ATTENTION DISTRICT 111 AND 201 EMPLOYEES

Teamsters Local 179 met for several hours with District management in contract negotiations August 24.   It has become patently clear that the Districts have no intention of reaching any kind of agreement for the bus drivers, let alone a fair agreement.  District management has engaged in classic bad faith bargaining tactics designed to avoid an agreement rather than reach an agreement. 

To avoid further conflict and end the strike, the Union even proposed to allow disputed provisions in the contract to be resolved by an arbitrator.   The Districts refused, apparently satisfied with cutting students’ class time and requiring kids to spend excessive time on hot over-crowded busses.  

 The Union will be addressing the Districts’ bad faith in the proper legal forum.  District management will, once again, cost the tax payers of the Districts thousands and thousands in legal fees and keep the children and parents of the community in a state of uncertainty as to the stability of their school transportation.

This legal process is not only going to be very expensive but also very long and complicated.  Given these circumstances, it would be an extreme and unfair burden on the Districts’ Teamster employees, students, and community for the Teamster employees to continue their strike at this time.  As a result, the Teamsters are suspending the strike and directing their supporters to return to work immediately, pending the outcome of the legal process and/or when a resumption of the strike is necessary.