MUNI Social Strike: It's Coming!

An inevitable fare hike in the City’s public transportation system, San Francisco Municipal Railway (MUNI), is distressing the most vulnerable members of society: seniors, disabled, low-income residents and students. Bus fares will be going up from $1.25 to $1.50 this September. Along with higher fares, San Franciscans can expect service cuts to bus lines as well as a reduction in driver privileges and mass layoffs. The reason for these changes is to alleviate a $57 million deficit faced by MUNI. Several citizen groups opposing these measures are mobilizing to fight back. One such effort is a social strike planned to coincide with these fare hikes.

A very visible strike is set to take place just before bus fares shoot up in September. Protestors will be holding posters, handing out flyers and chanting to encourage riders to ignore fare hikes, and to drivers to allow non-paying riders to board busses and cable cars/street cars. The organizers of the strike, Social Strike.net, say that the issues are clear: this is the second fare hike in 3 years; service cuts include grossly slashing drivers’ pre and post operation breaks, which raises concerns about public safety and the betrayal of downtown businesses for not paying fees or higher taxes in subsidizing the transportation agency beleaguered with a deficit for several years in exchange for its bussing thousands of employees working at these downtown businesses.

Social Strike.net is a group of concerned riders and drivers who take pride in their “non-reformist” grassroots tactics to form a working class solidarity to challenge MUNI’s proposed changes.

A group of about 40 MUNI drivers who have mobilized themselves in a group dubbed, “Drivers Action Committee”, is also meeting regularly to strategize about how to deal with the cuts.
The drivers say that their management and their bus driver’s union, Transport Worker’s Union Local 250-A, are both working against the drivers’ best interests, which in turn affects riders. Drivers from Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (ACT) and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), are also attending the meetings to support MUNI drivers in hopes to mobilize their agencies when faced with similar issues.

“It’s like a divide and conquer strategy between MUNI management and their union against the drivers and riders. It pits the riders against the drivers and benefits management,” says Lamia Bensouda of Social Strike.net. She also said that drivers from generations of families who have driven for MUNI are a part of the collaboration, and that these drivers are well versed on the policies, practices, and history of MUNI and its management.

MUNI Public Relations Officer Alan Siegel says that he’s heard rumors about planned strikes.

“We heard about a driver wildcat strike and this social strike. Their union says they won’t happen, and we’rehopeful that they won’t.”
Union representative, John Dudley, says members of the union aren’t supposed to strike on their own, and if the San Francisco City government authorizes fare increases, there is nothing they can do about it.

The fact that Michael Burns, MUNI Executive Director, is stepping down will not affect the plight of the transportation agency or the impending social strike.

“Its not who’s running the agency from the top seat, it’s the system itself. These frequent fare increases prove how poorly MUNI manages money. Drivers and riders are abused,” says Ehssan Vandaei, also of Social Strike.net.

A series of educational community meetings about the social strike will be held in various spots around town. The social strike itself may well go on after the first day in a continuous manner akin to Critical Mass, the monthly bike riders’ congregation. Exactly how it will be implemented, though, is still being examined by organizers. In the mean time, further details on the strike as well as legal resources for those punished for not paying fares while striking, will be published on http://www.socialstrike.net.