Aug

/ Se

pt 2

006 "Living Wage"

The Federal minimum wage is currently at $5.15 anhour/$10,712 per year, which is $5,888 less than the $16,600needed to bring a family of three above the federal povertythreshold. Nearly 15 million Americans, 70% of whom areworkers 20 years and older would benefit from a wageincrease. Almost 60% of workers are women and 40% are peo-ple of color.

Chicago City Council passed a ground breaking ordi-nance requiring "big-box" stores like Walmart and Target topay a minimum wage of $10 an hour by 2010, along with atleast $3 an hour worth of benefits. The ordinance is on storesthat occupy more than 90,000 sq. ft. and are part of companiesgrossing more than $1 billion annually. It is the first suchordinance in the nation.

Alderman Joseph Moore, the measures chief sponsorsaid he had lots of inquiries from other cities. "Chicago hasopened a contentious new front in the growing national move-ment, led by labor and poverty groups, to raise the incomes ofbottom-rung workers through local minimum wage and "livingwage" laws. St. Paul Mayor, Chris Coleman is in support of aliving wage ordinance.

Wal-Mart, Target and the Illinois Retail MerchantsAssociation were quick to condemn the ordinance as a form ofillegal discrimination and threatened economic reprisal bymoving stores out of the core cities.

In other action, Republican leadership in Congress areproposing a wage increase from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour alongwith permenat tax breaks on inheriting taxes, phased in overthe next three years, said Kevin Madden, the aide to Boehner,an Ohio Republican. The maneuver is aimed at defusing thewage hike as a campaign issue for Democrats while using itspopularity to spur enactment of the Republican Party's long-sought goal of permanently cutting taxes on millionaires'estates. (This action has presently failed at the time of printing)

"It's political blackmail to say the only way that mini-mum wage workers can get a raise is to give a tax giveaway tothe wealthiest Americans," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Massachusetts. "Members of Congress raised their own pay --no strings attached. Surely, common decency suggests thatminimum wage workers deserve the same respect." "It's outra-geous the Republican Congress can't simply help poor peoplewithout doing something for their wealthy contributors," saidRep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio. Politician have no problem givingthemselves a raise but they won't give anyone else a raise.Inflation has eroded the minimum wage's buying power to the

Continued on bottom of page 15

I know that by the time November 7th has come, you will allhave heard about as much as you can handle about the elections. I willfeel the same way. I also know, that this is one of the most importantvotes we have ever had for transit and our jobs.

Twenty-five years ago the legislature said that all revenue fromexisting motor vehicles sales tax should be used for transportation. Butevery year some or all of that revenue has been diverted to other purpos-es - more than $6 billion since 1981. Minnesota's "transportation amend-ment "will mean that 100 percent of the existing sales tax we all pay onnew and used motor vehicles will be used to fund our roads, bridges andpublic transit statewide.

This amendment is bipartisan. Whether you are a Democrat, aRepublican, a member of another political party, or independent - this issomething we should all be able to get behind.

Transit will get dedicated funding for the first time in Minnesotahistory, IF this amendment passes! The amendment reads: no more than60% for roads and no less than 40% for transit. (Currently only 54% ofthe sales tax is spent on all transportation, divided between roads andtransit.) But the amendment will not pass without your help.

In Minnesota, passing an amendment to the constitution requiresa majority of all the people voting. If a voter leaves this question blankon the ballot, it is considered a "no" vote. We all need to work on build-ing support throughout the state to help get this passed. This means talk-ing to your neighbors, family and friends, and maybe even volunteering afew hours each month to help get the word out.

We will be having various actions throughout the state. Thisincludes a booth at the state fair, putting out lawn signs statewide, door-knocking in all areas of the state, town hall meetings, and working differ-ent events such as Twins and Vikings games. If you can volunteer forany events, such as getting out lawn signs, or if you are willing to talkto people about this amendment, let the union office know. We canget you flyers to hand out or signs to put in yards. For more informationabout the "Vote Yes" campaign, and for other ways to volunteer, go towww.voteyesmn.org. With your help we can build security in transporta-tion for years to come.

Union Office Phone612-379-2914

e-mail:office@atu1005.com

website:www.atu1005.com

THE

PRESIDENT’SCORNER

Michelle Sommers

Page 2

LOCAL 1005OFFICERS

PRESIDENT/BUSINESSAGENT

MICHELLESOMMERS

VICE-PRESIDENT

JERRY EWALD

RECORDINGSECRETARY/ASST.BUSINESS AGENT

SCOTT TOLLIN

FINANCIALSECRETARY/TREASURER

CHUCKGUDKNECHT

Calendar

EDUCATIONCOMMITTEE - 2:30 PMAUG 15SEPT 19

EXECUTIVE BOARD& UNION MEETINGAUG 22 - MPLS.SEPT 26 - ST. PAUL10:00 AM / 7:30 PM

UNION OFFICE PHONE612-379-2914EMAIL:OFFICE@ATU1005.COMWEBSITE:WWW.ATU1005.COM

Minnesota's Transportation

Amendment

Page 3

Minnesota Political Contribution Refund Program

Since the 1992 election cycle, the Minnesota Political ContributionRefund Program has allowed residents of Minnesota to give $50 a year or$100 per married couple to a political party or candidate for state officeand receive the money back from the Minnesota Dept. of Revenue!

Here is how the program works:

1. Make a contribution to a qualifying party or candidate. Who quali-fies? Political parties, such as Minnesota DFL and eligible Party Units,such as the College Democrats of Minnesota, MYDFL, DFL HouseCaucus, DFL Senate Caucus, Dollar for Democrats, CongressionalDistrict DFL organizations, and Senate District DFL organizations. State- level candidates who agree to abide by state spending limits, such ascandidates for Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, the StateSenate, and the State House of Representatives.

2. Look for your receipt in the mail. The Political Party, Party Unit, orcandidate to whom you contributed will send you a receipt and a formfrom the Minnesota Department of Revenue (Political ContributionRefund Application) with instructions. If you make your contribution tothe Minnesota DFL and do not receive your receipt within six weeks,please call 651-251-6300 to inquiry about its status.

3. Fill out the one-page form and send it in with your receipt to theaddress listed:Minnesota RevenuePolitical Contribution RefundSt. Paul, MN 55146-1800

The deadline for sending in the form is April 15th of the year followingyour contribution. You can only send in one form per year, so if youmake several contributions that amount together to $50, save the receiptsand file them together with one form.

4. Look for your check from the Minnesota Dept. of Revenue in 6-8weeks. If you have any questions about the PCR program, please call theMinnesota Department of Revenue at 651-296-3781 or 800-652-9094.You can also check the website at www.cfboard.state.mn.us/publicsub-sidy/conrefund.htm

Education Committee

SCOTT TOLLINADVISOR

CHAIRMEMBERS ROTATE

SOUTHLIZ GOLDBERG

VICE CHAIR

HEYWOOD OFFICEOPEN

NICOLLETTHERESA COLLINSSTEPHEN BABCOCK

LAYOUT

OVERHAUL BASETOM CAMPBELL

RUTEROPEN

EAST METROJOANN BLOMGREN

HEYWOOD GARAGEJOHN SUTTLESLANCE WALLACE

EDITORIAL BOARDKEN DOLNEYDAN ABRAMOWICZ

THE AMALGAMATEDTRANSIT UNIONOUR STORY…OUR HISTORY

Will return next issue

The Minnesota gubernatorial election takes place thisNovember 7, 2006, with the statewide primaries on September12, 2006. Mike Hatch faces DFL challengers Becky Loureyand Ole Savior and incumbent Pawlenty against Sue Jeffers.

Republican Candidate: Was endorsed by the state Republican Party after winning the first ballot unopposed.Pawlenty earned his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Minnesota, and worked as a criminalprosecutor before entering politics. In 1994, Pawlenty was elected to the Minnesota House of Representativesand in 1999 became the Republican Party Majority Leader when the Republicans gained control of the House.

2002 Senate Campaign: Tim Pawlenty had originally planned to seek the Minnesota US Senate seat.However, this plan was derailed by Vice President Dick Cheney, who asked him to step aside to allow NormColeman to challenge Paul Wellstone without primary opposition. Wellstone died in an airplane accident andColeman defeat former Vice President Walter Mondale who stepped in last minute.

2002 gubernatorial campaign: Following the termination of his Senate campaign, Pawlenty decided torun for governor against DFL state Senator Roger Moe. Complicating matters, former Democratic CongressmanTim Penny ran on the Independence Party ticket. It was a very tight three-man race. Dogged by ethics com-plaints surrounding the campaign, but buoyed by President George W. Bush's post-Sept. 11th popularity and thefailure of either of his challengers to gain a solid lock on the votes of Democrats, Pawlenty won with supportfrom voters in the suburbs of Minneapolis-St.Paul.

Budget and Economy: Pawlenty was elected on a platform of balancing the state's budget without rais-ing taxes. During his first year as governor, Pawlenty balanced a $4.3 billion dollar deficit without raising taxes,mainly by reducing funding for state services. He also raise taxes by raising "fees". Members of the MinnesotaState Colleges and Universities board complained, student shares of tuition increased by double-digit percent-ages in that year and the years following. In his third year as governor, a government shutdown resulted from adeadlock between the governor's office and the legislature.

Pawlenty offered a 75-cent per pack tax on cigarettes that he called a "health impact fee," to the disdain-of his critics, including his supporters at the Minnesota Taxpayers League, as one way to balance a $404 milliondollar budget deficit. Republicans and Democrats alike protested, arguing that there was no real differencebetween the proposed fee (which would have been assessed on every pack of cigarettes sold in Minnesota) anda tax. But the measure carried.

In another reversal of his "no new taxes" pledge, throughout 2006 Pawlenty worked for funding a con-troversial Minnesota Twins baseball stadium, using tax dollars and signed the resulting Minnesota Twins-Hennepin County ballpark bill at the Metrodome. The legislation exempts Hennepin County from a state lawthat normally requires a referendum for any new local taxes. In June of 2006 he also signed a $999.9 millionpublic works bill that included funding for additional work on the Northstar Commuter rail line, an expandedFaribault prison, a bioscience building at the University of Minnesota and science facilities at Minnesota StateUniversity Mankato. The bill also funded a 26 million dollar expansion of the University of Minnesota's CarlsonSchool of Management.

Education: During his term, Governor Pawlenty created the Minnesota Academic Standards and newgraduation requirements, but was also the first Minnesota Governor ever to cut education funding. Cuts included$50 million from higher education and $27 million from K-12. Pawlenty argued his policies ensured accounta-bility in education, yet critics point to education bureaucratization and a movement towards more privatizedschooling.

Transportation: During Pawlenty's term, urban traffic congestion has increased significantly. Pawlentyhas favored raising fees and imposing tolls on roads as the primary means of discouraging excessive vehicular

Page 4

Government 101Liz Goldberg

Continued on Page 6

The Race for Governor: Republican Incumbent TimPawlenty and DFL-Labor Endorsed Mike Hatch

Page 5

Transit Safety and Security Committee2006 Summary

Members:Jim Chisholm, Management Advisor David Rogers, ChairJerry Larsen, Heywood Mary Vasterling, South Theresa Collins, NicolletDennis Engebretson, East MetroJames Van Hofwegen, Ruter

MayOthers in Attendance

Brenda Himrich, Manager, Rail &Bus SafetyA. J. Olson, Acting Lieutenant,MTPDChuck Wurzinger, MaintenanceSupervisor, Dan Lueck, District Supervisor,Street OpsDon Colberg, Manager,Maintenance, Scott Tollin, ATU 1005 RecordingSecretary / Asst. Bus. AgentMichael Guse, Rail OperationsSupervisor, Phillip Walljasper, Manager,LiabilityChristine Kuennen, Acting Asst.Dir-Bus Transp,

For complete details please see theSafety and Security Board located inevery garage.

TCC: Reports SmartCom will bein 'fallback' mode May 4-7 forupdates to Transitmaster hardwareand software.

Maintenance: Chuck Wurzinger:Possible funding available for newright-side fans at $200 each. Whileevaluating whether run box removalimproves windshield defrosting,right-side fans may be installed on afew buses before committing to theexpense of retrofitting. Future busspecs will include right-side fans.Asked for clarification of whichshades are preferred; the committed

unanimously recommend the solidshades to accommodate variation inoperator heights. Jerry made amotion that visors should be replacedfirst, then the perforated shades bereplaced with solid shades as able;motion was seconded and carried.

The front-door valves (to correct slow/ non-closing doors) still being engi-neered for replacement. Run boxremoval nearly complete at Nicollet.Yield signs are being installed.

Questions/comments:Theresa: Thank you, thank you, forthe yield signs. Christine: Remindscommittee the yield sign is informa-tional, not license to run over vehi-cles. She has received a single com-plaint of a merging bus cuttingmotorist off. Van: Recommends (inform of motion) Maintenance getbudget allocation for safety retrofits. Chuck: Budgets are completed inadvance annually. Funding for partsis easier to find than labor. Specialprojects like retrofits are done on OTso regular maintenance doesn't suffer.

Dennis: Operator seats are too closeto the steering wheel; big/tall driversneed more room for safety and com-fort. Chuck: Standards are 95/5 -seats meet 95% of users needs.Recurring complaint, but difficult tomodify. One seat that was movedback destroyed a transmission; theseat belt housing damaged a sensor.Some seatbelt retractors were relocat-ed from left to right to avoid similardamage. Dennis says some buses atEast Metro have those seats; mayimpede operator from leaving seatquickly. Brenda is concerned retrac-tor on right may violate safety regula-tions and she will check. Theresa:Do operator seats ever get cleaned?Some get pretty smelly. Chuck saysthey do get cleaned; may not beenough - he'll check on frequency.

Dave: Floor-button for operating'annunciator' PA system on 600 seriesbuses can't be used at same time as

Continued on Page 16

AT THE GARAGESOUTH

Contact Liz Goldberg

"The Old Wooden Bench"At the "Old Northside Garage"old timers may remember sit-ting or even sleeping on an oldwooden green enamel bench sit-uated in the drivers room. Thatbench now sits in SouthManager Steve Jaeger's office,newly restored with its beautifuloriginal wood and gleamingbrass fittings. But the real story goes back to1905 to the steamboat"Minnehaha". Originally one ofa fleet of excursion boats builtby the Twin City Rapid TransitCompany that extended thestreetcar lines of the Twin Citiesout to and around LakeMinnetonka to serve new com-munities around the lakeshore.The boats were built to resem-ble streetcars, with torpedosterns, sharp bows, upper deckbenches, and cane cabin seats.As automobiles became popular,ridership on the boats declinedand the boats were sunk in 1926into the deeper waters of thelake. 54 years later the"Minnehaha" was raised fromthe lake bottom. The MinnesotaTransportation Museumacquired the "MinnehahaSteamboat" in 1990 and sixyears later the historic Streetcarboat returned to scheduled pas-senger service on LakeMinnetonka.To hear more details about thishistoric bench just go to Steve'soffice and say "Hey Steve- nicebench!"Then read- "The Little YellowFleet: a History of the LakeMinnetonka Streetcar Boats byEric Sayer Peterson".

Page 6

AT THE GARAGEHeywood

Contact Lance Wallace Dr. # 64434

At the Heywood Garage, wewould all like to thank "RouteH" for the new refrigerator andthe forty-two inch plasma televi-sion. We also now have DirectTV. These three things help uspass time and keep our foodfresh, Thank you.

To the friends and family ofMichael Hurt, #9603, we sendour condolences and prayers.Michael passed away after 10great years of service and willbe greatly missed. Rest inpeace, Michael.

If there is anything that youwould like to have mentioned inthis column, please contact meat lance245221@yahoo.com or

AT THE GARAGELRT

Contact Bob Boyle Or

M a r k A m m e n d

Obviously the price of gas is up aslight rail gave 853,000 rides inJune. The first of our three newLRVs is just about ready to beshipped to Plattsburgh New Yorkfor final assembly.

The contender Twins and soonthe new look Vikings are sure tokeep our ridership high as we gointo fall.

Plans are being drafted to facilitateour interface with the Northstarline, and possibly the Central corri -dor line.

Maintenance welcomes DerrickRobinson, Michelle Harris, WillFetterly, Mike Lund, and MarkStein our newest additions the crew.

traffic, rather than to build more roads or improve the current roads.Under his watch, the carpool lanes of Interstate 394 leading into down-town Minneapolis were converted into high-occupancy toll lanes. Hedoes not support expansion of the metro area's "Light Rail" system, orother high-occupancy public transportation, in the foreseeable future, inspite of widespread support by Metro residents. Pawlenty appointed PeterBell to head the Met Council forcing the first strike at METRO Transitsince 1995. In Washington D.C., Governor Pawlenty has lobbiedCongress to mandate higher ethanol use despite the uncertainty overwhether corn-base ethanol requires more energy to produce than it yields.Minnesota has mandated a 10% mixture of gasoline and ethanol (gaso-hol) since 1997, while most cars are designed to safely handle 15%.Pawlenty signed into law in May 2005 a bill that will raise the minimummandated mixture to 20% in 2013.

Foreign relations: During his term as Governor, Pawlenty hasmade trips to Bosnia (2003), Kosovo (2004), Poland, Iraq and the CzechRepublic visiting Minnesota troops. Critics insist these trips are unneces-sary and do little beyond elevating Pawlenty's personal image on thenational stage, at the expense of ignoring Minnesota's real problems athome. Governor Pawlenty was the presiding official at the departure cer-emony for over 2,600 Minnesota National Guard soldiers deploying toIraq in March 2006 for a one-year tour. However, Pawlenty's militaryexperience has been limited to photo opportunities such as this. He hasnever served in the military. He welcomed Mexican President VicenteFox, in 2004, in an effort to strengthen trade. The president announcedthat his country would open a consulate in Minnesota the next year,removing the need for Mexican residents in the state to travel to Chicagofor identification papers and other materials.

Democratic-Farmer-Labor Candidate: Mike Hatch- AttorneyGeneral and Ex-State Commerce Commissioner. After seeking partyendorsement for governor twice previously. Hatch got the strongestshowing in the statewide caucus straw poll, and continued to hold hislead into the party convention, in which he received endorsement.Hatch, a 1966 graduate of Duluth East High School, went on to earn hisBachelor's Degree in political science (with honors) from the Universityof Minnesota Duluth in 1970. In 1973, he received his Law Degree andworked as a trial lawyer. He became the chairman of the State DFL Partyin 1980. Governor Rudy Perpich appointed Hatch to Commissioner ofCommerce, a position he served from 1981-1989.

In the 1980's he waged a campaign to weaken the grip that abor-tion rights and anti-abortion had on the party and tried to focus on morebread and butter issues. In 1990 Hatch ran, and lost in a primary againstPerpich, and again in 1994, against John Marty. In 1998 he was electedas State Attorney General, a position to which he was re-elected in 2002.In 2005 he helped negotiate discounted hospital fees for uninsuredpatients in the state. As of June 2005, 58 out of 140 Minnesota hospitals(which take in about 75% of the patients in the state) have agreed to theplan. Uninsured families that earn less than $125,000 per year will nowpay reduced rates-in many cases the best rates available if they had beeninsured. Signatories so far include Fairview Health Services and theMayo Clinic. Hennepin County Medical Center and HealthPartners are

Government 101 Continued

Page 7

AT THE OFFICEHeywood

Looking for someone to let usknow what is going on

CRYPTO by PAT KELEHANEach letter stands for another. If you think X=O, for example, it would equal O throughout the puzzle. Clue: A=T

A Z B Y C X U D W G X H D J V K C L D M B K A

A U C H W K V W C H H B S A U C

D Q A C J W D A B J M C Q A. G A X J C D A C L D

Q B A B S A C W H G B W. (Answer on page 23 )

AT THE GARAGEEast Metro

Looking for someone to let usknow what is going on

We are going up by 24 driversin the Sept Pick. AM Pull-outsare increasing by 7 along with 7PM pull-outs.

The DSSC will be meeting atEast Metro on Sept 21st. The 5yesr anniversary for East Metrois Sept 22nd. Look for informa-tion on a “pot luck” sometimethat week.

State Fair is coming, bring extrawater and a lunch, be preparedto work long hours-DriveSafely!

Congratulations to MarshallFreeman #6320. He attendedthe MN State Roadeo in Duluthon Sat., July 29. While he did-n’t take 1st, 2nd or 3rd, he washappy to represent Metro

two of the largest hospital systems that have not yet agreed, but they areexpected to do so in the near future. Hatch and his wife Patti, an elemen-tary school teacher, have three daughters.

2006 Campaign for Governor: Hatch received the DFL partyendorsement on Saturday, June 10, 2006, at the DFL state convention inRochester, Minnesota. The major Minnesota political parties do not actu-ally nominate candidates until the September primaries, so each party'sendorsement is not binding. In the battle for this endorsement, Hatchdefeated state senators Steve Kelley and Becky Lourey. Sen. Kelley con-ceded and withdrew from consideration, but Sen. Becky Lourey indicatedshe would still run in the primary. Hatch selected former state auditorJudi Dutcher as his Lt. Governor candidate on June 25, 2006.Hatch has always championed the working man against powerful institu-tions, such as insurance companies, big banks, hospital chains, and otherlarge healthcare organizations. He is not considered a party insider. Hehas never championed a group of elitist liberals within the DemocraticParty, such as gay rights or abortion rights. He has concentrated onissues closer to the hearts of blue collar and rural democrats, such asjobs, education, healthcare, and pro gun rights. Supported us duringstrike, came to several rallies and our picnic.

When asked why he is running for office, his reply was "Thisplace is a mess, … all because of the public relations value of the no newtax pledge." If elected Hatch would roll back 50% of the tuition increas-es at state colleges and universities that happened during Pawlenty's firstterm. He would take aggressive measures to hold down health care costsand force them to cover mental illnesses. He would speed up develop-ment of mass transit in the twin Cities. The money to fund these initia-tives would come from collecting stricter auditing procedures to catch taxdodgers and another $275 million by closing tax loopholes for foreign-operating corporations. www.hatch2006.org

Sources: Wikipedia.org/ Politics of Minnesota, St. Paul Pioneer Press

I started with M.T.C. on Sept. 1974, came from a truck driving job on therecommendation of a M.T.C. driver. I was a driver until April 1978 when I trans-ferred to Maintenance. I had gotten into a verbal altercation with a passenger, whowrote a multipage letter to the Transit Commission. They wanted a written responsewithin one hour. I used that hour to go to M.T.C.'s employment office and take theentrance test for the mechanical department. I passed the test and was told that Icould start as a sweeper in about two weeks. I went back to the transportation man-agers office and told him that I wouldn't write a response to the passengers letterbecause I felt the passenger was not in their right mind. I told him I could resignnow or I would give my two weeks notice at this time. The manager asked me notto resign. I continued to drive till I got the call to come work as a sweeper.

I would like to mention at this point that the passenger mentioned earlier was at the Hennepin countycourt house (a couple of years ago) for a court proceeding against a relative and wound up shooting and killingthe relative. She also shot and wounded the attorney involved in the case. Presently I work at the overhaul baseas a Senior Mechanic in the body shop. I have attended union meetings ever since I was employed be M.T.C. Iwas active at different levels in the union most of my career. Several of my union brothers at the overhaul basecame to me before the 1999 executive board elections and asked if I would consider running for executive boardmember at the overhaul base. I won that election and two more since. I take my responsibility as OverhaulBoard Member very seriously. And hope that my bothers and sisters at the overhaul base understand this. I thankthem for being patient with me and with the entire 1005 executive board and our officer's. Nothing moves at thespeed of light at the Metro Transit although we would sometimes like it to.

Meet the Executive Board Members Bob Schaller - Maintenance Board Member For OHB

Page 8

Hi, first off I have to explain theaccompanying poem. When I original-ly balked at writing something aboutmyself on short notice, my co-workertried to motivate me by saying hecould write something in no time, andmake it rhyme.

I started at MTC when I was eight-een years old. I have twenty-sevenyears here with thirteen years on theexecutive board. It was natural for meto get involved with the union. My dad was a Teamster and I heardunion related stories at the dinner table my entire life so I had apositive view of unions when I started.

I have two children, both currently in college. I am very gratefulI have a union, blue-collar job that affords me the ability to edu-cate them.

Since birth I have benefited from the hard-fought gains of thelabor movement. I think we all need to appreciate what we have incomparison to other workers of the world; however, we must notbe complacent. There are anti-union forces chipping away at ourstandard of living. We must be united with each other and the restof the world's workers if we are to stand up to the powerful globalforces working against us. That is what drives me to be a unionactivist. Standing up for what we deserve and insuring a voice inthe workplace.

Del was born in ‘61,He lives a life of frolick and fun

His dad is Don and his mom is Rose,He shops at thrift stores for his clothes.

He started here in ‘79,His boy and girl turned out just fine.He likes his boat and dirt bike, too,

listenin’ to the blues and sippin’ a brew.

He yells at foremen when you have an issue,

When you cry in your beer,he hands you a tissue.

He is usually late‘cause that is his habit,

Sure was a sad daywhen he buried the family rabbit.

He gave a speech to extend the strike,Sure was shaky as he approached the mike.

He raised his voice and we all cheered.What a wonderful son that Don and Rose

reared!

Biographical poem by Pat Kelehan

Delroy Schafer - Maintenance Board Member for Nicollet

Hello my name is Russell Dixon Sr, born in Chicago, Illinois, January 26th1952. I'm from a large family, five brothers and five sisters. One of my first jobswas at a service station at one of the busiest corners in Chicago, I learned how towork hard early in my life in order to help out at home and get nice things. My dadalways preached about work ethics and responsibility.

I went into the U.S Army in 1970 to 1976. I married my high school sweetheartin 1971. In that union of 13 years we had four beautiful kids, Russell Jr., Krystal,Nathan and Saundra. After a number of jobs including working for Chicago Transitand Illinois Central Railroad, my life changed with a very unpleasant divorce. Idecided to move to Minneapolis so I could get a fresh start. That was the best moveI have made in my life. My oldest brother's sister-in-law told me about MTC.

I started working as a part-time operator at Shingle Creek Garage in 1987. There we had some charac-ters that you couldn't help learning from, just about everything you needed to know about being a bus operator. Ifound out early how important it was to get to know your union representative. When I became a full-time oper-ator I started to get involved. I was a safety and security representative for Heywood Garage, I also got involvedwith the diversity group to help with input on minority hiring and other diversity issues that I felt should beaddressed with this company. (That is what I meant about getting involved at the work place).

Like the old saying," If you are not part of the solution you are part of the problem". I got involved withthe union, mainly for the same reason. Everyone wants to complain, but no one wants to do a damn thing to cor-rect a problem. Like James Brown use to say, " I don't want nobody to give me nothing, open the door I'll get itmyself".

I knew that being a union representative can be very busy. I feel that the operator is the life and blood ofthis organization, and I don't want to hear someone tell me differently. In order to do this job you must havepride. I'm not discounting any other department, but hell, I'm an operator. All I'm saying is, like what you do anddo it well and that will keep your ass out of trouble. For those who know me that is just the way I talk OK!

Page 9

Russell Dixon Transportation Board Member For Heywood

Gregg Hall - Maintenance Board Member for HeywoodAfter losing some popularity with management at my last employer for trying to

unionize the shop I joined MTC in March of 1980 as a cleaner, after working myway up thru the ranks to mechanic I started questioning management on their ratherdiscriminatory way of treating some of the workers. Soon after I was elected to theE-board at Snelling, I served 2 terms there and then moved to a garage closer tohome.

When Mike Julkowski was forced to move from Heywood, I completed his termthere and have been elected to two more terms. As an executive board member Ihave been active in trying to improve the skill level and pay of the MaintenanceDepartment. I am helping to develop the Metro Transit certification tests and work-

ing with the International to develop testing with the National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence. Thistesting will be used to promote better training in the maintenance division.

Twenty five years ago laptop computers didn't exist. Now they are used to communicate with theengine, transmission, air conditioning, brakes, and all of the other electronics on the bus. As our rapidly agingwork force retires we need to find an efficient way to transfer their knowledge to the next generation of techni-cians. I believe the best way to do that is to have the people that actually do the work train the next generation.

Page 10

AT THE GARAGENicollet

Contact Theresa Collins #1378 orStephen Babcock (Stores)

Nicollet management would liketo thank all Nicollet drivers forbeing under the 2006 goal foraccidents. Don't let up, keep upthe good work.

The bus rodeo is Sept 25-27.Watch for signups. Lets havegood Nicollet participation.

Check out the fitness room, thenew exercise equipment is here.Thank you to everyone whotook the time to get involved inroute H.

Don't forget to bring your itemsfor the garage sale which isbeing held on Sat Oct 7th. Wewill need volunteers the day ofthe sale.

Contact Theresa Collins # 1378to volunteer or if you have aquestion.

Want to thank the NicolletMaintenance Club for theircookout. The potatoes wereespecially good!

Mo (Murry Olson) is hanging inthere - Iraq

The Great Minnesota Get togetherFact: The Minnesota State Fair has been held every year since 1859 withonly five exceptions: in 1861 and 1862 due to the Civil War and DakotaIndian Conflict, cancellation in 1893 because of scheduling conflicts withthe World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, in 1945 due to war-timefuel shortages, and in 1946 due to the polio epidemic.

The MinnesotaState Fair is the largest12-day fair in thenation and serves as amodel in all of NorthAmerica. During thepast decade attendanceaveraged 1.68 millioneach year, 2005 attract-ed 1,632,876 people.Agricultural in naturewith livestock judging,horse shows androdeos, fine arts andhome craft competition,farm equipment pluscommercial complexes,food concessionaires,free entertainment onsix stages and tennights of nationallyknown entertainers and a carnival midway. It is The "Event of theSummer" in Minnesota.

1859 The First State Fair The first four years of territorial agricultural fairs began in 1854

with the site changing annually- Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester, RedWing, Winona and Owatonna. In 1858 Minnesota was granted statehoodand the next year the first Minnesota State Fair was held near (what isnow) downtown Minneapolis. In the 1870s and early 1880s civic groupsfrom both St. Paul and Minneapolis worked relentlessly to provide a per-manent home for the fair in their respective cities and for a time bothindependently held competing fairs. Minneapolis the younger city of thepair, outdid its neighbor by staging the larger fair with the help ofColonel William S. King.

In 1884 the Minnesota State Fair finally found a permanent homeat its present location, midway between the two cities. The RamseyCounty Board of Commissioners donated their 210-acre Ramsey CountyPoor Farm to the State Agricultural Society the governing body of theState Fair.(An alternate site considered at the time was an area aroundMinnehaha falls). The fairgrounds acquired additional land and grew to320 acres. Architecturally, it is home for many historically significantstructures including the Arts Center, Progress Center, Grandstand andColiseum (the Hippodrome).

The State Fair Ferris wheel, 1901 (MN. Historical Society Photo)

AT THE GARAGEOHBContact:

Tom Campbell

Auto racing a popular venue in 1907 and by 1909 the fair hostedone of the first auto shows in the nation. Politicians and Railroad Baronshad a great need for the State Fair. The Railroads owned great tracts ofland that they wished to sell as farmsteads but the general attitude of set-tlers in the "Lower States" was that Minnesota was a harsh climate wherelivestock would freeze and grain would not grow. The goal was to show-case Minnesota and attract immigrants and succeeded in attracting thou-sands of new settlers. Eventually, Minnesota became one of the top pro-ducers of spring and winter wheat and Minneapolis became a nationalleader in milling and food industries.

State Fair OperationsTHE MINNESOTA STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY conducts the annual Minnesota State Fair and

administers maintenance, control and improvement of the State Fairgrounds. The society is a semi-state agency,autonomous, self-governing and financially self- sufficient, with State Fair generated funds used for operations,maintenance and capital improvements. The society became a territorial organization in 1854, a public corpora-tion in 1860 and an arm of state government in 1903. In 1885, with the acquisition of the present fair site and alegislative appropriation of $100,000 buildings were erected; two-decked wooden Grandstand, a horse racetrack, a great wooden-domed Main Building (later the Agriculture Building) and several smaller buildings.

Sources: Senator Rod Grams, history@mnstatefair.org., Minnesota State Agricultural Society.

If you are curious about what the State Fair was like in 1901 on the very day that Vice PresidentTheodore Roosevelt delivered his "Speak softly and carry a big stick" speech at the grandstand? Find it online:www.startribune.com/blogs/oldnews/?p=12

Page 11

AT THE GARAGERuter

Contact Dan Abramowicz #6225dan6225@comcast.net

State Fair will be coming soon!There will be plenty of opportu-nity for overtime. Please seeyour dispatcher.

Get ready to drive the 2300’sand some of the 2200 seriesGilligs buses. They are beingserviced by the MaintenanceDept. for the fair.

“Remember, small actions canhave big results."

A barker on the Midway, circa, 1900, featuring palm readers and Huladancers. (Mpls Journal Photo)

Get involved, it maybe your job!http://www.voteyesmn.org/

Page 12

ATU 1005 PicnicThe 1005 Union picnic held Sunday, June 18th at Battle

Creek Park located in Maplewood was a great success.Beautiful Battle Creek Park surrounded by 1,840 acres of natu-ral wildlife, trails, woods, wetlands and grassland was the per-fect setting. Picnic Headquarters was located in the large spa-cious and shaded pavilion just next to the water park, with theweather co-operating, the day turned out beautiful, full of sun-shine and comfortable temperatures.

Although attendance was conservative, the enthusiasmand fun ran high. The Grill was in constant operation and unionmembers consumed plenty of tasty picnic fare. But, food, social-izing, exploring the park grounds as well as the Water Park wasonly part of the day's activities. Games and prizes for the kidsconsisting of; "Pick the Ducky," "Scavenger Hunt" and "HowMany Nickels In the Jar," kept the kids happy.

For the adults, a series of drawings for various prizes. Aspecial thanks to Brian Lamb for the donation of the first prize,which consisted of 8 hours vacation pay and was won by Moses,Powell, #2277 of EM. The $1,000 in union merchandise givenaway included 6 union jackets, 11 sweatshirts and 10 golf shirts.In addition a special thanks goes to Richard Bodsberg #7840,EM, for obtaining the gift certificate of a one-night stay at theEmbassy Suites in St.Paul, and was won by Jerry Hedy, #9885of EM.

A favorite event of the day was "The Dunk Tank" which not only provided entertainment for thosewatching but collected $61 from various members who paid to try to hit the target to dunk the dunkee. The $61was raffled off and won by- Teresa Bolduc, #2392 of MJR.

A big thank you to all the volunteers that helped out in the planning and working of the picnic. It was alot of work but also a lot of fun and it was an opportunity for union members to enjoy each other outside of the

workplace.

Thanks to:Michelle Sommers, President /Business AgentScott Tollin, Recording Secretary /Asst. Bus. AgentDan Abramowicz, Ruter BoardMember Ken Dolney, Dispatcher, EM BoardMemberTheresa Collins, #1378, Nicollet, Ed.Com. Member

Michelle, President, taunting a unionmember as he misses the target. Mostly itwas the kids that put her under!

An unbelievable sight! Kids sit-ting patiently for the next game.

Page 13

Local ATU1005 Prize List

Moses Powell, 2277, EM, 8Hours VacationJerry Hedy, 9885, EM, EmbassySuitesTeresa Bolduc, 2392, MJR, Won$61 Dunk Tank

The following won UnionJackets:Richard Bodsberg, 7840, EMStephen Babcock, 3128, NicolletBenjamin Cardinal, 66004, EMJim Duncan Marylee Heard, 7731, EMBernie Martinez , 5989, Nicollet

The following won UnionSweatshirts:Benjamin Cardinal, 66004, EM Rita CollinsTheresa Collins, 1378, NicolletKenneth Dolney, 2641, EMRod Johnson, 7605, Heywood Mark Lawson, 6986, SouthGreg Marshall , 64437, EM Bruce McRaven, 9019, South John Ripley, 64005, EM Bonnie Labarre, 7628, MJRMarlin Jensen, 1381, Hey

The following won Golf Shirts:Kenneth Dolney, 2641, EMJeremiah Ellison, 2284, SouthRobin EllisonFrank Hernandez, 3427, EMDaniel Kadlec, 64088, MJRMark Lawson, 6986, SouthJames Merkl, 557, MJRWendy Rouleau, 6903 SouthHue Thao, 3829, EMKelly Waterhouse, 2005, FTH

Kid GamesStephen Zapata, Scavenger HuntElisia Webber, Nickle GameEvan Calhoun, Nickle Game

Please call Union to pickup

Liz Goldberg, #1630, South, Ed.Com. MemberStephen Babcock, #3128,Nicollet Stores, Ed. Com.MemberK. H. Rice, Driver #5975 - EastMetroMary Vasterling, #9662, SouthPeggy Schnack, #788, EMTeresa Bolduc, #2392, MJRMelanie Benson #854, NicolletThe ATU 1005 would also liketo thank "Insights" for publiciz-ing the picnic and Metro TransitMarketing for the donation ofprizes for the kids.

Nothing would have happened if it was-n't for these volunteers, Thank You again!If you attended the picnic and filled out aticket- be sure to check the prize list to theleft - You may be a winner!

Scott Tollin, Recording Secretary /Asst. Bus. Agent, Grilling up food.

Jim Merkl and family MJR Operator #557

John Zapata and family, Nicollet Mechanic

Page 14

Worker's Program debuts on AIR America RadioA new weekly program focusing on working life in America, "Working It" is hosted by comedian,

author and former union organizer Jackie Guerra.

It is on saturday afternoons from 1:00 -2:00 pm on KTNF AM 950. Program information and archivedprograms are available online at http://shows.airamericaradio.com/workinit/.

"Workin it" focuses on such issues as state of workers rights, campus labor activism, and immigration asworkers in the U.S.

Job TipsBy Theresa Collins

It has happened to all of us. We are picking up passengers, running 10 minutes behind and you areready to leave the bus stop. There is a passenger attempting to jaywalk across traffic to catch your bus….a pas-senger on the bus mentions their concern that you should wait for them… your reply should be: “there is anotherbus coming that they can get, I'm trying to get you and other passengers safely, ontime to your destination / con-nections. With that quick response you have assure your passenger your priorities and assured them the pas-senger in the street will soon be serviced.

Carry a system map in your work bag, or on your bus. If you can't answer a passenger's question, theycan look up their answer.

As you approach a bus stop with a connecting route, announce the route, and if there is a bus at that stopannounce that the bus is there and if any of your passengers want you to honk.

Have the take-outs hanging directly behind the driver, instead of all over the handrails. The video cam-eras can record all activity without obstruction, and the wind from open windows will not blow them all over thebus.

Wait until the elderly and handicapped have a seat before leaving your bus stop, this can prevent fallingaccidents and paperwork.

Think Positive, Be PositiveBy Theresa Collins

We are all born with great potential, but without desire, we won't amount to much. Everyone is ordi-nary, but some of us do extraordinary things. Believe in yourself. Grow and expand your horizons. Nothingcan bring us happiness or joy. We are the vehicles in which it exists. Happiness is found in the pursuit of ourpassions and desires.

Be kind and compassionate in all you do. Stop carrying around things like self doubt, laziness, fear dis-couragement, negativity, blame, resentment, and worry. Motivation needs daily stroking. Your attitude eitherfeeds or smothers the fire. No one but you can act on the desire to be motivated. Enjoy but never settle forwhat and where you are. Always strive to accomplish even bigger dreams.

Start looking at the glass as half full, rather than half empty. Treat people how you want to be treated.Give respect and you will receive respect. Think positive! Stop saying shoulda, coulda, woulda. You can'tchange your past but you can improve your future. Negative behavior like complaining, moaning, griping andgroaning, will only feed your negative views on life. Start thinking in an " Attitude of Gratitude" belief and yourdays will look brighter.

Be thankful for what you have, rather than what you don't have. If you change your negative views,your home and work life will run smoother. Be the best you can be. What do you most desire in life? That isyour goal! Commit to making it happen. Act on it with relentless discipline and perseverance, and you will besuccessful.

Page 15

The 1005 Line / Readers SurveyIn an effort to offer our members what they need or want, please help us understand what it is that you like ordislike about our newsletter by filling out this short survey.

Our newsletter is: too long _____, too short _____, about right _____

The ideal amount of pages is 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32 (Circle one).

Our newsletter is: published too often _____, not often enough _____, about as often as needed _____

The information is: easy to understand _____, hard to understand _____

The information is: useful _____, not very helpful _____

Please rate the following regular features:1 = very good, 2 = good, 3 = ok, 4 = needs improvement, 5 = needs replacement.

a. Hot Topics (political issues) _____b. Presidents Corner _____c. Safety & Security Reports _____d. Garage Reports _____e. Interviews _____f. Delegate Reports _____g. Special Reports (like Government 101) _____h. History Reviews _____i. Holiday Information _____j. General job information (Shop Talk , Job Tips) _____k. Crypto _____h. Humor _____, Cartoons_____i. Health & Welfare _____j. Announcements & Special Events _____

What would you like to see more of? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Any other comments: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Remember this is your publication, so your ideas or suggestions will be taken seriously. Please let us know howwe're doing. Please return to Stephen Babcock at Stores, Nicollet Garage. You can download or print out a sur-vey online at the union's website: www.atu1005.com, Education Committee page. Electronically you can send toOffice@atu1005.com

We will publish the results & adjust our thinking. Thanks.

lowest level in about 50 years. Yet lawmakers have won cost-of-living wage increases totaling about $35,000 forthemselves over that time. This year the highest paid staffers in the White House- including Karl Rove, DanBartlett and Steven Hadley- got a cost-of living adjustment of $4,200 boosting their total salary to $165,200.Lawmakers fear being pounded with 30-second campaign ads that would tie Congress' upcoming $3,300 payincrease with Republicans' refusal to raise the minimum wage.

Another thing Republican are trying to do is tie Associate Health Plan’s(AHP’s) to the minimum wage.House Republicans passed legislation creating AHP's that would allow employers to cut health benefits for mil-lions and raise health care costs for others. The bill could allow health plans to exclude coverage for OB/GYNand pediatrics, screening for cervical, prostate and other cancers, diabetes, mammography, maternity benefits andchild care. (www.edworkforce.house.gov/democrats) Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press, CNN - Minimum Wage.Stay tuned for further developments.

Minimum Wage from Page 1

TCC: Jim Chisholm: The ControlCenter is still working on issuesresulting from the upgrade in May.

Maintenance: Chuck Wurzinger, DonColberg: Retrofitting costs for thesolid shade: $100-115 each, pluslabor. All future bus purchases willinclude pull-down shades. NOTE: Abus struck 2 parked cars when theshade jammed down fully extended;new installs can't.

Asked for consensus on new right-side fans (at $200 each). Committeevoted to start with test of 5-10 busesat each garage. Rain storms on warmdays also fog up the windshield, sothe fans can be evaluated for effec-tiveness before investing for all thebuses.

Gillig is working on the front doorvalve replacement to correctslow/non-closing doors. Don't writeup 'loud hazard beepers' at this time;Gillig is working on that too. Yieldsign installation is nearly completethroughout system. Very few runboxes left on buses. The securitygate has been installed for LRT reliefat the Franklin Station.

Questions/comments:Theresa: Thanked Chuck and Don onbehalf of the committee; they've beenrespective and responsive to TSSC

Page 16turn-signal buttons. Chuck:Maintenance is aware; there doesn'tseem to be a solution.

Street Operations: Dan Lueck: TheLake St. detour via 21st Avenueto/from 31st St. is by city of Mpls.direction; they said NO to 22nd Ave.Regarding WB Lake St. at theHiawatha Station - the city will relo-cate the sign pole closer to the alleyto provide a bigger, better bus stop.Update: A new bus stop on EB 38thSt. at 16th Ave. S. has been installedat the request of Rt. 14 Ops & cus-tomers.

Safety: Brenda: Reports thatMaintenance is ordering new steptreads; they'll be thick rubber withyellow stripe at edge and installedthis year. Better cushioning in cus-tomer falls; downside is they may bemore difficult to clean. Christinepointed out there was a high inci-dence of Artics involved with fixedobjects while trying to get unstuckafter last month's snow fall events.

Phil: Explained the types of accidentsthat generate claims in Risk: any inci-dent or collision that causes propertydamage or injury. Special SituationReports (SSR) from TCC are ana-lyzed daily; claims are set up for anysituations that may result in a loss.STARS, the database program used totrack claims, can make reports basedon any criteria in the database. Lookfor report based on the top 10 loca-tions with the highest volume ofclaims since Jan. 2005 in yourgarage location.

Update: Right-turns on red withArtics - Safety investigated therequest with input from theInstruction Center and Maintenance.Due to the additional time it takes anArtic to clear an intersection versus a40-foot bus, there will be no changeto the current policy of no turn on redfor Articulated buses.

LRT: Michael: Sheri Gingerich hasbeen promoted to Deputy ChiefOperating Officer for Rail; the man-ager position has been posted.Government Station - the possibilityof some type of fencing has hit a

political snag, but isn't abandoned.Franklin Station reliefs may beginwith the June Pick. LRT Rule Bookis undergoing a complete rewrite; theinitial rulebook was a hodgepodge ofheavy and freight rail and existingLRT properties. The final draft isbeing reviewed.

In 2005 LRT captured 10% of HHHDome attendees; so far in 2006, LRThas transported 15% Dome attendees.

Police: Lieutenant A. J. Olson: Sorry,no incident statistics reports, MTPDhas lost 2 support personnel who putthem together. Details at BCTC andMidway area. Metro Gang StrikeForce is a continued success; concen-trating on buses this month. Two MTpolice officers on beat partnershipwith Mpls. and Hennepin County.

Safe Zone foot beat will have fouradditional officers (2 day shift, 2 PM)in Mpls.; St. Paul will also have 2foot beat officers. Pending funding -will not jeopardize regular coverage.Hopeful for more uniform & under-cover officers and new bike-mountofficers this summer into fall,dependent on funding.

Shared a success story: Customerreported 2 guys in rear of bus withpowder, joking around. FTH operatorevacuated bus; perps walked away.Same operator called TCC later whenhe recognized one guy, who wasapprehended. "He did everythingright."

Other: Jim: Aerosol training classesare scheduled; Centurion Skills willpresent both "Assault prevention" andAerosol training, administered by theInstruction Center. Bus wraps arestill being explored at upper manage-ment level.

Mary: Cell phone courtesy placardsare missing in some South buses.Theresa: Should ops write up loudbeepers? Jim will emailMaintenance.

Nicollet Mall: flower pots too closeto curb, limiting back door use. Sheplans to run again; her term expires inJune.

JuneOthers in Attendance

Brenda Himrich, Manager, Rail &Bus Safety, A. J. Olson, Acting Lieutenant,MTPDChuck Wurzinger, MaintenanceSupervisor, Lee Bennett, Asst. Manager, StreetOpsDon Colberg, Manager, Maintenance, Scott Tollin, ATU 1005 RecordingSecretary / Asst. Bus. AgentGlenn Gilbert, Acting Manager,Maintenance Admin., Phillip Walljasper, Manager, LiabilityChristine Kuennen, Acting Asst. Dir-Bus Transp, Scott Sternthal, MJR Op. for VanMichael Guse, Rail OperationsSupervisor

Page 17requests and inquiries.

A cover is needed to cover driver'sA/C vent when original is missing?Don will verify that all garages haveA/C covers. Operators need a securelocation for personal and work gear.No space or funds are available tocreate a secure nook. Scott remindedcommittee that the union contractincludes language for reimbursementof stolen property while working.

Members brainstormed for solutions:instead of a company bulletin, thecommittee will post a memo to alertops and share suggestions. Brendaasked about the status of new busstep surfaces. Don said the materialis on order, to be installed as needed.

Street Operation: Lee Bennett: TheHomeland Security evacuation planfor DT Mpls. is a work in progress.Five staging locations ringing DT;DT workers, shoppers, visitors walkto: Plymouth & I-94, , Franklin & I-94, Central & University, Dunwoodyparking and the Washington bridge atthe U of M and transport to shoppingcenters in first-ring suburbs.

Operating Conditions Report (OCR)is a better means of reporting con-cerns; report more immediate issues(malfunctioning traffic signs, VW-size potholes etc) to TCC via radio.

Questions/comments: Theresa:Uptown Transit Center needs largeEB DO NOT ENTER signs beforeone-way bus entrance from Fremont.Chicago Transit Center needs land-scaping or fencing in median to dis-courage pedestrian crossings. Trafficis too close; can lanes be realigned toallow for WB buses? Van: Can a left-turn arrow be requested for NB 2ndAve. S. at 3rd St. S. to assist PM out-bound express buses?

Safety: Brenda: Update: NO right-turn for Artics; distributed memofrom Mike Conlon. Distributed'Accident by Garage' statistics. May16, 2006 was the first 'zero collisions'in a 24-hour period system-wide;reported first in Insights. Christineoffered kudos to the operators for thisaccomplishment! Announced that a

'Blind Spots' video will be shownduring June. Encourages that SafetyKeys be promoted as a refreshercourse, not just discipline. It'soffered every Thursday.

When Brenda mentioned she wasobserving the '4-second' followingrule to an instructor, she was remind-ed that's recommended for buses; 2seconds is recommended for cars.Clarified that she is exploring tiedown improvements for scooters withMaintenance. Theresa mentioned thatsome scooters have hooks; she sug-gested longer belts would help.Brenda said hooks are a customiza-tion. Manufacturers state that it is notrecommended that scooters be used inconjunction with motor vehicles toduck liability. Jim asked about a bul-letin for customers (like the strollerpolicy flyer?). Sheila asked ifGeorgia is still liaison to the disabledcommunity - YES.

Phil: Follow-up on Nicollet-Grant asmost expensive claim location: Onecustomer claimed injury after beingcaught in door. An elderly customerfell. One bus on bus collision result-ed in $94,000 paid claims - of 70 cus-tomers, only 3 courtesy cards werecollected.

Asked what categories the committeewants tracked; Phil wants to developa one-stop type report for TSSC.Injuries are the most costly, with col-lision following. Of 1,750 personalinjury claims, 699 were at bus stop;of those, 613 were stopped, withboard / alight incidents.

Phil reiterated the need for courtesycards and notifying TCC, alertingpossible need for tape. Jim noted thatSafety often calls a day after incident;Brenda said they need the SpecialSituation Report (SSR) number.

Questions/comments: Dennis: Doescommittee have time to managereports? Safety will manage. Jim:Suggests a 'Top 10' with where,when, what, how to avoid; quarterlyfor the TSSC board at each garage. Theresa: Observed that customersdon't want to be bothered and oftenjust jump on next bus without turning

in a courtesy card.

LRT: Michael: Due to warranty, noretrofit fixes can be made to traincars, like fans, at this time. Police:Lieutenant A. J. Olson: Distributedincident statistics reports. Trespasslist currently emailed to garage man-agers; Jim will email them to givecopy to TSSC member to post.Metro Gang Strike Force is a contin-ued success. Interference with transitcharges are sticking better in light ofHomeland Security; fare evasion isnot so successful.

Questions/comments:Dennis: The 'who, what' where' isimportant info on the Trespass list.Theresa: Regular customer com-plained to her re: a NB 19 on 5/18with rowdy riders - police responsewas requested but no show. Christinewill check.

Dave: When school is in session,LRT is swamped with rowdy stu-dents; what about this fall? A. J. andcaptain are discussing preemptivemeetings with school. Theresa:Suggests flyer with rules and expecta-tions to go with school fare cards.Jim: Route 724 needs more help on 3trips; police detail requested.

Christine: Reminded members theMAD DADS program officiallybegins June 12. Former TSSC mem-ber John Suttles will serve as liaisonbetween Metro Transit and the group.Jim distributed Bulletin No. 41 and aStar Tribune article, both dated May30, re: MAD DADS. A four-manteam will ride 12 hours each monthbetween 4 and 9 pm. They will beginwith route 5, which provides 500,000rides per month.

Other: Transit security reports there isno plan at this time to update employ-ee IDs on a regular basis; cost is pro-hibitive. Theresa was re-elected tothe TSSC for another two-year term;she was unopposed.

Respectfully submitted, Sheila Miller,Interim Recording Secretary

For complete details please see theSafety and Security Board located inevery garage.

Page 18

Service CallsStephen Babcock

How does management gauge the success of a work unit, inparticular, the Bus Maintenance Dept.? Bus changes are consideredperformance indicators of the Bus Maintenance Dept. and are heldagainst them on a report card called "Road Call Mileage". But morethan that,bus changes are a major inconvenience to our passengers, adrain on resources, and damages Metro Transit's reputation for reliabili-ty.

"Road Call Mileage" is calculated by taking the miles traveleddivided by the number of chargeable road calls. A "ChargeableService Call" is any mechanical failure report where a bus change is made or a trip is lost. This is regardless ifit is a driver's error in reporting or whether the driver's assertion is true or false. For example, if the driver doesnot know how to adjust the temperature on the A/C or operate the driver's seat, that is chargeable. If you have aproblem that greatly affects the performance, safety of the bus, please call. Examples would be A/C notworking at all on a hot summer day, transmission slipping or not shifting, any type of fluid leak, overheating,etc…

Not every service call is chargeable to the garage. A Non-Chargeable Service Call: are things beyondthe control of Bus Maintenance, such as sick buses, radio and farebox buses, overhead signs, accidents, dirty /vandalism (by passenger), operator emergency or sickness, stuck bus and flat tires. Also if the bus is on routetraining; dead heading back to garage; being transported between facilities; the bus is in S98 mode; being usedas a police command post or emergency fire shelter; if bus has already been charged and breaks down again; it isNon-Chargeable. Metro Transit still reports all the mechanical failures to the National Transit Database, even ifthey are "non-chargeable" to the garage. Radio, Farebox, Tires all count in the federal numbers, just not inter-nally for Bus Maintenance Road Call Mileage. Sick, Vandalism etc are NOT required to be reported to the feds.

As a driver you are responsible for the pre-trip inspection. Items that are caught at the pre-inspectionare usually items that can be easily repaired by Bay Service. If they cannot be repaired then dispatch will assigna different bus to you and that bus is brought into the shop for repair. All defects, whether minor or not, cannotbe discovered at the pre-trip inspection.

Another invaluable tool in keeping service calls down is the Driver's report. They tell us first handabout problems. Things like the wiper blade streaks, an adjustment of a driver's seat, even though these defectscan be annoying over eight hours, these are not valid reasons for a bus change. Out on the road, there are a lot ofsituations where the bus defect the driver is calling in is not safety related. This is where the driver can helpMaintenance, defects such as a dome light out, bus squeaks / rattles, visor needs adjustment/tightening aredefects that will not impair the safety or the operation of the bus. They can be reported on the Driver's report atpull-in. If the bus pulls in and the defects are reported on the Bad Order slip, they are not counted towards any-thing because the vehicle did not disrupt revenue service.

Bus Maintenance performs extensive preventative maintenance on our fleet to keep it in peak conditionboth mechanically and appearance wise. Maintenance and inspection are a good way to catch small problemsbefore they become large enough to cause a service call. Bus Maintenance has a vested interest in fixing thedefects on buses.

There are sometime situations in which the bus needs repair but the item to repair the bus is not present-ly available through the Stores / Purchasing Departments. This may happen because to make the repair, it is anew part to our system or we have just gone through a lot of them recently. (Campaigns can take months) Partscome from vendors all over the country, sometimes the world. Ordering, shipping, receiving and getting it to thebus maintenance facility takes time. It is very expensive to fly parts for a repair. If the defect is not a safetyissue, they will sometimes run the bus in service while holding others with more serious problems to make pull-

Page 19out. (Pull out is meeting the required number of buses to fulfill Transportation's need to run service during peaktime) If the bus is not needed they will not run it. So if you are lucky enough to get the same bus within a twoweek period, the minor defect may still be there but every effort is being made to fix it as soon as possible, atthe most cost effective manner. Still write the bus up on the Bad Oder Report on pull in.

It may also be possible that it is an intermittent problem. That the problem was there at the time thedriver had it but went away. Electrical relays, harnesses, switches, are famous for this. If the bus gets writtenup for the same problem, Maintenance can look at past WO's and see that it is a repeater.

What can drivers do to help Bus Maintenance? The defect needs to be written on the driver's reportat "pull-in". When you write up a defect, be as specific as you can, that way the defect will be properly noted.Bus Maintenance is in the process of communicating service call concerns with the Transportation Managerswhen a "problem not found" happens so the situation can be resolved. (This is where a driver writes up a busand no problem is found) Bus Maintenance wants to educate their partners in the Transportation Dept. on howthey are an essential element in providing clean, safe, reliable service to the public.

Minimizing bus changes on the route is the only way that we will reach this goal of lowering our servicecalls per mileage. Service areas with high demand routes will naturally have higher service call levels. If youhave a problem, contact you TSSC member and explain. They can bring it to the forefront.

Thanks to Nicollet Maintenance Dept. and Glenn Gilbert, Fleet Service Supervisor, MIS (ManagementInformation Systems) for information.

Shop TalkThe seat of the problem is a failure to communicate. When an operator writes up a defect report on the

drivers seat and fails to be specific as to what the actual problem is he has a good chance of sitting on thesame problem the next day. A drivers seat suspension is a lot like the bus, it has an air ride suspension with ashock absorber to keep it from bouncing. it has an air control valve to adjust height, In addition it has variousknobs and levers to control the position of the seat, backrest and lumbar support. Try to be as specific as pos-sible when you write up a drivers seat, remember, a mechanic will sit in that seat 10 minutes and he may notbe able to feel the problem a driver feels in 10 hours.

Northwest Conference - June 22-25,2006 Edmonton, AlbertaBob Schaller - Executive Board Overhaul Base

International Vice President Bob Hickaway talked about how Alberta will be short 330,000 trade peoplein the next 10 years. This is because younger people are being trained for office jobs and not for trade jobs.Also the baby boomer's are retiring. He talked about how A.T.U. locals in Canada are having a hard time retain-ing mechanical people. The private sector is paying $33.per hour and the public sector is paying $27.per hour.

Rick Milican, a representative from the New Democratic Party, commented that many members of theAlberta legislature think that privatization is the greatest thing ever. Four representatives along with the mem-bers of A.T.U local 569 (Edmonton) got the privatization issue killed for this session. The A.T.U and U.T.U(United Transportation Union) were talking merger second week of July. U.T.U. is made up of mostly locomo-tive engineers and other railroad workers.

International Vice President Ron Heitzman said the First Transit is a far worse company than Laidlaw.They are unjustly firing people, lying to people and slashing benefits. They have an average of a unfair laborpractice EVERY TEN DAYS from 1999-2004. They constantly deny Weingarten rights to their employees bycalling their meetings "Screenings". When routes are put out for bid, the union office contacts the NationalLabor Relations Board and get a printout of all the violations FIRST Transit has made to make it well known atmanagement meetings and at public meetings how they treat people. I would like to thank President MichelleSommer and the membership for sending me.

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Lance grew up in Golden Valley, Mn. He went to Robbinsdale Districtschools and later graduated from Osseo Sr. High. He grew up playing baseball.In his last year of youth baseball leagues, he was on an elite team to representthe Northwest Suburb League. Lance played church league basketball for fouryears at Calvary Lutheran Church. He was an avid sports player.

After many years of backyard football, Lance landed on a semi-profes-sional football team located in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the Green Bay Bobcats.His last fall was spent driving approximately 600 miles there and back everyweekend to make the games. In this league, there were many players up and coming into the professionalleague and those who were recovering from injuries that did play in the professional leagues, mainly from thePackers and the Bears. He is still a Vikings fan, but it was an honor for him to play along side NFL players.Lance made the Shakopee Wolf Pack this year, but was unable to play this season due to the ever changingschedule of a full time bus operator.

Lance's first job was at the Golden Valley Country Club. He started at the age of 11 caddying and con-tinued to do so until last year, at age 21, when he became full time. Throughout the caddy job he also worked inthe golf shop, worked as a ranger and worked as a valet.

Lance started his driving career when he was only 18 years old driving for District 11 in Champlin andAnoka. He did this for two plus years. Before this job, Lance has temporarily worked at Wendy's, but decidedthat driving was much better than flipping burgers, and here started his love for driving.

Between the two or three jobs that Lance held for the last five years at the same time, he has managed tofind comfort and security in Metro Transit, which may explain why he is there close to 65 hours a week. Just before starting at MTC, Lance became engaged to Cori, his fiancé. Currently they are planning for theirmarriage, which will be October of this year. This has kept Lance extremely busy. They also just found out thatthey are expecting. This is their first child, and it should be coming around March.

Lance has just become active in the Union and is excited to do anything to promote and support theunion and its workers.

Meet Our Newest Member of the Education Committee

Lance Wallace, Driver #64434

Help America Get a RaiseIn the past nine years, workers making the minimum wage haven't gotten a single raise. Not one. And

while the minimum wage of $5.15 an hour has stayed the same, its value has dropped precipitously, puttingworkers further and further behind. That is why the ATU is asking its members to join with other unionBrothers and Sisters in calling on our federal and state governments to give America a Raise.

Efforts are currently underway in more than 20 states to raise the minimum wage, either through legisla-tion or voter initiatives. In addition, the ATU, along with the AFL-CIO and its affiliates, is calling on Congressto pass the Fair Minimum Wage Act, introduced by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA).

The Fair Minimum Wage Act would increase the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour over two years. Thatmeans an additional $4,370 a year for someone making the minimum wage in a full-time job -- enough to payfor nine months of rent, 18 months of heat and electricity or tuition at a community college. The bill will direct-ly help 7 million working families as soon as it goes into effect and indirectly help millions more as the risingtide lifts wages.

You can help by going to http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/fairminwage and becoming a citizen co-sponsor of the bill. To find out what is happening in your state, and how you can help go to:www.aflcio.org/issues/jobseconomy/livingwages/americaneedsaraise_findyourstate.cfm

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ATU 1005 2nd Annual Charity Bike RunAll Facilities and Friends Welcome

Charity: Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Registration: $20.00 per Bike

When: Saturday, August 19th, 2006. Leaving at 11:00 AM and ending approximately 4:00 PM.

Raffle: Prize give-aways. The registration of $20.00 goes to Big Brothers, Big Sisters and automaticallyenters you in the raffle. Prize awarded at the end of the run. Winners must be present to win.

Poker Run: For those wanting to join for an additional $5.00 per person. One card will be drawn at each stopand recorded. Best poker hand (5 card) wins 50% of the pot, 2nd wins 30%, and 3rd place wins 20%.

Where:Meet at East Metro Garage, lower lot. Try to get there early to register, get a map, draw a card, receivea raffle ticket and get any other information that may be needed. Registration starts at 10:00 AM.

The Run: Approximately 100 miles starting at East MetroGarage ending at Fat Boys in East Bethal, MN.

Stops: Stops to be announced upon registration.

Contacts: Kevyn Snavely, #7725 ph 763-439-7705, email: KJWinginit@comcast.net

Jerry Larsen #9763 ph 651-329-3581 email: JJML007@AOL.COM

The ATU Sholarship Awards #1 Carrie Kern, (Bruce Kern #5418)#2 Marin Farvour, (John Farvour #5436)#3 Susan Thao, (Alan Thao #3650)#4 Guy Rossman, (Robert Rossman #1010)

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RetirementsCongratulations to

Employees who Retired in MayGerner, George C, 663, Helper III, E.M. Maint.Devries, Robert J, 7029, Bus Op. PT., Heywood

Thomas, Gordon H, 2550, Op. FT., RuterEmployees who Retired in June

Lloyd, Ronald L, Senior Mechanic, 5393, E.M. Gar.Kasprzak, Ronald P, Op. FT., 76, E.M. Gar.Becklund, Larry W, Op. FT., 340, E.M. Gar.

Parker,Patrick J, Schedule Maker III, 4275, Hey. Office Dean, Ronald L, Op. FT., 1422, Hey. Gar.Henn, James P, Op. FT., 1436, Hey. Gar.

Small, Kenneth R, Bus Op. PT, 7026, Hey. Gar.Nelson, Howard E, Bus Op. PT, 7019, Nic. Gar.Draves, Gregory T, Cleaner III, 2753, MJR Gar.

Young, Willie Jean, Op. FT., 8930, MJR Gar.Wussow, Lorraine R, Op. FT., 9135, MJR Gar.

Hurajt, Robert R, General Dispatcher, 1507, So. Gar.Eckert, Francis D, Bus Op. PT, 7003, So. Gar.

Linquist, Donald E, Bus Op. PT, 7023, So. Gar.Cornely., Fletcher L, Bus Op. PT, 7024, So. Gar.

Westphal, John R, Bus Op. PT, 7033, So. Gar.Twomey, Paul T, Bus Op. PT Day, 7772, So. Gar.

Congratulations to employees celebratingAnniversaries

August

5 YEARS8/27/2001, 3707, Miller, Michael J, SCADASIG/COMM ELECTRONIC TECH8/27/2001, 3710, Sandifer, Tacoy, Vault Puller8/20/2001, 5607, Anglin, William, Cleaner III8/20/2001, 2380, Harris, Frankie M, Bus Op. FT.8/20/2001, 2381, Steward, Henry, L, Bus Op. FT.8/20/2001, 2382, Webber, Timmy D, Bus Op. FT8/6/2001, 3706, Bunner, Melonie J, Stockkeeper

10 YEARS 8/26/1996, 7689, Londroche, Terry B, Bus Op. FT8/26/1996, 7682, Sager, Brian D, Train Op.8/10/1996, 7675, Roberts, Steven E, Bus Op. FT.8/10/1996, 7680, Thao, Geh, Bus Op. FT.8/05/1996, 7659, Blumenthal, Joanne M, Bus Op. PT. 8/05/1996, 7669, Diriye, Ahmed O, Bus Op. FT.8/05/1996, 7664, Harris, Michelle R, Bus Op. PT. 8/05/1996, 7662, Mohler, Thomas R, Bus Op. FT.8/05/1996, 7661, Pfeil, Stanford L, Train Op.

15 YEARS8/19/1991, 3445, Love, Kathleen M, Clerical Assistant8/12/1991, 9162, Crepeau, Laurence R, Helper III

8/12/1991, 9160, Leen, Dale R, Bus Op. PT.8/10/1991, 9157, Jensen, Jay P, Bus Op. FT.8/10/1991, 9155, Nelson, David B, Bus Op. FT.8/05/1991, 9151, Evens, June A, Bus Op. FT8/05/1991, 9153, Hammonds, Steven D, Bus Op. FT.8/05/1991, 9152, Smith, Timothy D, Bus Op. FT

25 YEARS8/03/1981, 663, Gerner, George C, Helper III

30 YEARS8/26/1976, 3049, Jones, Kathy Y, Maintenance Clerk8/16/1976, 637, Johnson, Timothy M, Bus Op.FT.8/09/1976, 5418, Kern, Bruce N, Mechanic8/09/1976, 2728, Tarnowski, Jerome J, Bus Op. FT.

September

5 YEARS9/24/2001, 5609, Johnson, Kevin L, Senior Mechanic9/17/2001, 2399, Austin, Rawlston A, Bus Op. FT9/17/2001, 2392, Bolduc, Teri R, Bus Op. PT.9/17/2001, 2397, Huggins, Milton L, Bus Op. PT.9/17/2001, 2396, Lund, Craig J, Bus Op. FT9/17/2001, 2393, Smith, Angela M, Bus Op. PT.9/15/2001, 2390, Baldus, Rebecca L, Bus Op. FT.9/15/2001, 2391, Mallett, Derrick L, Bus Op. FT9/10/2001, 2388, Flores, Lisa L, Bus Op. FT9/10/2001, 2383, Lentz, Joseph L, Bus Op. PT.9/10/2001, 5606, Lund, Michael J, Mechanic9/10/2001, 9347, Mathison, James M, Bus Op. FT9/10/2001, 2384, McConnell, Julie A, Bus Op. PT.9/10/2001, 5608, Svare, Clarence G, Mechanic9/10/2001, 2385, Swickard, Timothy L, Janitor9/10/2001, 2389, Thiel, William G, Bus Op. FT9/10/2001, 2387, Townley, Alcenya R, Bus Op. FT.

10 YEARS 9/21/1996, 8614, Fredine, Jerry R, Train Op.9/21/1996, 8608, Maki, Bradley R, Bus Op. FT.9/21/1996, 8617, Ross, George A, Bus Op. FT.9/16/1996, 3561, Nelson, Colleen T, T.I.C. Rep

15 YEARS9/16/1991, 9171, Beamish, Jacqueline R, Bus Op. FT.9/16/1991, 9169, Chase, Charles R, Bus Op. FT9/09/1991, 9167, Jackson, Peter J, Bus Op. FT.

20 YEARS9/22/1986, 3351, Libby, Arnold E, Lead Stockkeeper

25 years9/21/1981, 716, Terrell, Joe E, Garage Coordinator

35 Years9/1/1971, 178, Wicklund, Donald D, Bus Op. FT.

Submissions for Letters to the Editor are subject to approval of the Editorial Boardand space considerations. Letters to the Editor are solely the opinion of the authorand do not represent endorsement by ATU Local 1005 or the Education Committee.If you have an editorial to submit, please contact a committee member or our advisor Scott Tollin at: stollin@atu1005.com

LettersTo TheEditor

Answer To CRYPTO: TWO MECHANICS ARGUED ABOUTTHE SNUGNESS OF THE ALTERNATOR BELT. IT CREATEDA LOT OF TENSION.

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Political Issues

Pointing out a topic and stating a position is often called defining an issue. Various individuals and/orgroups are often associated with specific positions and certain issues. That does not mean, however, that there issome kind of moral or cultural imparative. The historic American way is self direction, and that is at the verycore of our origins. We decide, each one of us, what issues are important. We can also decide who if anyone isworthy of our support.

We can represent ourselves or leave it to others. Our Union belongs to a council of unions that looks atthe voting records and public positions of various canidates. They make recommendation, but they know it’s notbinding. You are not required to follow them. We are always stronger, if we form groups that view politicalissues in a similar way. We have a political system that encourages this. If you would like to know what the hottopics are, listen to what various canidates say, look at their voting records and review various recomendations.You decide, it is your right. It’s the America way

K. H. Rice, Driver #5975 - East Metro

A New Approach WorthLooking At!

The Local 234 theme oftrying to raise up everybody’shealthcare instead of dragging usdown is starting to take hold inthe media and with the publicdue to their “Partnership with theRiding Public “ advertisementsand efforts with communitygroups. Maybe it could be effec-tive here.

K.H. RiceKim Rice has resigned from being an active member of the Education

Committee. We hope that he will continue to contribute through his philisophical,thought provoking editorials of which only he can produce. An example of which isright on this page below. We wish to thank him for his past support and wish him thebest in his future endeavors with Metro Transit. Go “Underdog”!

RonLloyd’sRetirementParty was held atEast Metro onJune 8th.

Former President Ron Llyod joined Metro TransitMaintenance Dept. on March 21, 1979. After a long career,Ron has decided to retire. We are thankful for his many yearsof union service starting as a Board Member at the Old Snellinggarage. Ron was part of the leadership team that took usthrough many tumultuous times; a three week strike in 1995,the "Coleman Study", Transit Redesign, multiple privatizationefforts, part-time driver issues, several contract negotiations,healthcare issues, and the six week strike in 2004.

The Education Committee is especially grateful for thetransformation of the union paper under his guidance. Ronworked for the union and it's members to the best of his ability.May life find you with it's wind to your back. Thank You

Ron recieves his gold watch from BillPorter. Ron felt every retiree is entitled toa gold watch.

Cushing, Emmet J. age 80 of Lake City died June 15, 2006. Emmet served as President and BusinessAgent for the St. Paul and Minneapolis Transit Union. He also served as Past Commissioner of EconomicSecurity Department for the state of Minnesota. We offer our sincere condolance to the Cushing family. Wethank him for his years of service to his fellow union brothers and sisters by enriching the economic & workingconditions of the members he served.