Transit Union Will Call Strike Vote

MCTS bus. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) is in the midst of a budget crisis and active labor negotiations, and now the bus drivers’ union is considering their options for a strike.

On June 17, leaders from the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 998 were sitting at the negotiating table with MCTS representatives when they were handed a press release, printed out on a sheet of paper.

The press release, they were told, had just gone out. It announced the transit system was projecting a $10.9 million operating deficit in 2025 and that service cuts were on the way.

ATU 998 and MCTS have been negotiating a new three-year labor contract for the past few months. In May, union representatives told Urban Milwaukee they thought negotiations were breaking down, after a series of meetings that seemed, on their end, to be going nowhere.

The union is now preparing to call a strike vote in the coming weeks, according to ATU Vice President Mike Brown. If the vote prevails, and membership authorizes a strike, it gives ATU leaders new leverage in future negotiations, because they will be able to call a strike at any time.

The last time the union called a strike was 2015. But, since then, members have repeatedly provided union leaders strike authority during contract negotiations. In 2018, negotiations lasted nearly two years and almost ended in a strike in 2019. In 2022, the union voted to authorize a strike, but came to an agreement with MCTS before playing that card.

The union has agreed to extend the current contract until the end of July, providing more time to reach an agreement, Brown said.

MCTS is facing questions about its operations and finances after blindsiding policymakers with a projected budget shortfall for the year in June. The system is facing an audit by the Milwaukee County Comptroller. Donna Brown-Martin, head of the Milwaukee County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) resigned and announced her retirement on July 1.