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Metro Transit bus and light rail drivers, mechanics and other workers may strike during the Super Bowl in February if an agreement is not reached on a new contract, their union said.
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1005 represents 2,500 workers who operate mass transit in the Twin Cities. The union and Metro Transit have been in negotiations since June. The union said driver safety is a key issue.
On Monday, Local 1005 announced members had rejected a final contract offer with a vote of 93 percent against and 7 percent in favor. The members authorized the union to call a strike.
Local 1005 officers said they are still hopeful of reaching an agreement.
“We have sent dates to the mediator and Metro Transit to sit down again at the bargaining table,” the union said in a statement posted Wednesday on its website. “As of this writing, dates have not been set.”
To keep the pressure on management, Metro Transit employees are wearing LII stickers on the job, reminding everyone that Super Bowl LII will be in Minneapolis in February. Mass transit will play a major role in getting spectators to the game and related events.