TBOU Information Picket For Wednesday July 22nd At TWU Headquarters Canceled

TWU Local 100 has finally certified the delegates for the 2009 convention so Take Back Our Union (TBOU) is calling off the information picket for tomorrow July 22 , 2009 at the TWU Local 100 headquarters located at 80 West End Avenue.TBOU can now focus 100% of its energy on the MTA and keeping subway booths open.But we could not allow the Local 100 leadership to disrespect the over 10,000 members who voted in the election so TBOU forced the issue and got the union to certify the delegates and give up on these fake protests and re-counts of the convention election.Therefore TBOU has canceled our picket for tomorrow and would once again like to thank all of the members who voted for TBOU. To stay informed always visit http://www.tbou.org/

TBOU Action Alert -Post The Election Results Already! Information Picket this Wednesday July 22 at TWU Local 100 Headquarters

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) is calling all members, supporters, and anyone who believes in democracy to join us Wednesday, July 22nd, starting 5:30PM at the TWU Local 100 Headquarters at 80 West End Avenue (At 64th Street. By subway, take the 1 to the 66th Street stop). TBOU demands Election Results be posted now! Over 10,000 TWU Local 100 members voted for convention delegates a month ago, but TWU Local 100 still hasn't posted the results.


United Invincible, however, has a leaflet claiming victory and has posted on the TWU Local 100 website, claiming that the only reason they haven't posted the results is that they are awaiting a AAA re-count of some divisions by hand. This is an outright lie, as AAA has no knowledge of a recount, and the TWU election committee hasn't asked for one. Enough with this circus! Post the results now.

What TBOU demands is simple:

· TBOU demands the election results be made known and the delegates be certified.

· TBOU demands that the Executive Board rescind the bylaw that states General Election votes won't be counted until December 2009. Count all the votes now -- the members have a right to know whom they voted for.

· TBOU demands all Information about Current Contract be available to the members. Put an end to secrecy in TWU Local 100

· TBOU calls for an end to politics and for TWU to join the fight to keep Subway booths open.

TBOU Information Picket: 80 West End Avenue TWU Headquarters
Wednesday July 22th 2009, 5:30PM
With TBOU presidential candidate John Samuelsen and the TBOU Convention Delegates

Call the election committee (212)873-6000 ext.2089 or (212) 873-6000 ext.2059,or send an email to elections2009@twulocal100.org or districtleader@msn.com and demand to have your Vote Counted Now !

Don’t let them hold your Union & your vote hostage! For more information, go to http://www.tbou.org/

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Elecetion Update- Post the Election Results

Post the Election Results!

It's been more than two weeks since the ballots were counted in the election for convention delegates and Local 100 still hasn't posted the results. But United Invincible has a leaflet out claiming victory. They're working hard to spin the outcome - without showing the numbers. This is just one more example of their disrespect for the members.

When the numbers are finally posted, you'll see that:
• Take Back Our Union won in 40 of 67 head to head contests. United Invincible won mostly races where no one ran against them.

• Incumbent VPs Andreeva Pinder , Stephan Thomas, and Enzo Sinnona ,running on the United Invincible slate, were all defeated in the delegate election.

• Acting VP William Wyatt, also running on the United Invincible slate, was almost eliminated, winning his seat by only 2 votes.You'll also see that:

• Take Back Our Union won a clear majority of votes in Stations ,Track, Line Equipment/Signals, Power, , Train Operators, Conductor/Tower Operators, MTA Bus, and Private Line Operations.• Most of the members in TA Surface voted for either Take Back Our Union or United for Change. United Invincible won a majority of the delegates,but a minority of the votes

• United for Change candidates soundly defeated United Invincible in TA Surface Maintenance.

• The only divisions United Invincible won were MaBSTOA, MaBSTOA Maintenance, Structure, School Bus and Paratransit, and Car Equipment.United Invincible won seats to the convention, but they've lost the confidence of the members.They won a majority of the delegates only because they did everything they could to deny members a choice, by disqualifying members in good standing from running.

If the Toussaint Team had respected the membership's right to a real election , Take Back Our Union would have 62 delegates to 51 for United Invincible.

It’s Time to TAKE BACK OUR UNION ! come JOIN THE MOVEMENT this Thursday JULY, 16TH from 4PM to 7 PM @ the North Star Fund located in Mid- town Manhattan 520 8th avenue 22nd floor (between 36 and 37 street) any train to 34 Street Penn Station

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Election Update- TBOU Stuns Toussanit and company in Delegates Election

Take Back Our Union Stuns Toussaint in Delegates Election
Transit union leader Roger Toussaint & Co. suffer a series of defeats
BY Pete Donohue DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Thursday, June 25th 2009,

Transit union leader Roger Toussaint, who led the 2005 Christmastime strike that crippled the bus and subway system has lost his ironclad grip on Transport Workers Union Local 100. A faction of Toussaint loyalists suffered a series of stunning defeats Monday when ballots for delegates to the international's convention were counted.

The loyalist "United Invincible" faction won dozens of uncontested races - but lost about 40 of 67 of the
Head-to-head contests against the anti-Toussaint "Take Back Our Union" camp, sources said Tuesday.

That doesn't bode well for Toussaint and his handpicked successor, acting Local 100 President Curtis Tate, who heads the United Invincible slate. Toussaint stepped down after taking a promotion to the international organization.Ballots for president, secretary-treasurer and other Local 100 leadership posts were mailed out this month ,but haven't been counted.

"If I was a betting man, I'd say John (Samuelsen) is going to win," J.P. Patafio, a high-ranking union official, said of the Take Back Our Union presidential candidate.Samuelsen's campaign has claimed Toussaint, Tate and the current union administration have been too
accommodating to Metropolitan Transportation Authority management since the strike. Toussaint and Tate have said they've won safety and other improvements through cooperation after the walkout. A Tate spokesman declined to comment.The union hasn't officially released the results of the delegates' races.Ballots for delegate seats and local leadership posts were mailed out this month to transit workers.The American Arbitration Association will not count the presidential race ballots until December under an unusual schedule adopted by the union's executive board, which said combining some aspects of two elections would save money.
pdonohue@nydailynews.com

Thank you; From the Entire TBOU Slate we appreciate your support,You had the Courage to Vote for Change and, that change starts now: TBOU Stations is seeking membership input this summer before the TWU Convention so we can create the members agenda as part of the platform at the TWU Convention in Las Vegas this fall on:

Thursday July 16th from 4:00 PM to 7:00PM
North Star Fund in Mid-town Manhattan
520 8th avenue 22nd floor bet (36 &37) street
Take A , C or E Train to 34 street

Visit our website at http://www.tbou.org/ daily for all your TWU convention news, events and receive live reports via web during the 2009 TWU Convention this fall from TBOU. Be part of the Rebuilding of TWU Local Join the Movement ,Take Back Our Union the Change is here now !

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Elecetion Update-Send Your Ballots Back Now

Brothers and Sisters, If you haven't sent your ballots in yet (remember, there are 2 ballots, one for convention delegates and the other for Local officers, Executive Board, and Division officers), don't wait any longer. The ballots have to be received by 8:30 AM on Monday, 6/22. Pick them up off the table where you left them, mark your choices for the Take Back Our Union Slate, and send them back now.

If you haven't received your ballots yet, and your back dues were all paid up on June 1, call the American Arbitration Association at 1-800-529-5218 and ask them to send you ballots. Tell them you need both of the ballots. Don't wait any longer. Call now for more information on the TWU Local 100 Election go to www.tbou2009.org

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Elecetion Update-Message from John Samuelsen

A Message from John Samuelsen

Thank you for your support. With it we will change Local 100 and make it a strong union again. In this campaign I have met and talked with thousands of Local 100 members and it is clear – they want change. They are tired of the old union politics. They want a new, revitalized Local 100. The membership needs and deserves it.

If you have not yet voted, please do so today. Put an “X” three times in the slate boxes for Take Back Our Union. Put the ballots in the mail so you don’t forget to send them back in time to be counted.

If you have not received a ballot by now but paid your dues and came into good standing on or before June 1, 2009, call (800) 529-5218 and ask the American Arbitration Association to send you a ballot.

We have gotten a few reports that United Invincible supporters are asking people to give them their ballots. If true, that’s cheating. It violates the election rules and federal law. Don’t do it. It’s your vote in a secret ballot election. No one will know how you voted unless you tell them.
United Invincible’s campaign of lies has fallen apart. People see through it. Their campaign of personal attacks against me and trying to divide one group of members against another has not worked and couldn’t. Local 100 members know that only by working together in one union can we all do better.

The Truth about the Sale of the Building

One of the questions I have been asked many times has to do with finding out the facts about the sale of our Union’s building. The truth is the current leadership of this union attempted to sell the union hall two weeks before the expiration of our contract in 2005. Prior to selling it, Roger Toussaint and Ed Watt were strongly advised by the Local 100 Executive Board committee established to look at the building sale issue, that the deal didn’t make sense.

Toussaint Fires me for Opposing the Sale

On December 3, 2006, several elected Maintenance of Way officers, including myself issued a public statement to Toussaint urging him to delay the sale of the building until after the contract fight - and subsequent strike - was over. I and another elected Track Division officer were then fired from the Union for taking that position.

Why the Sale was Wrong

In the summer of 2008, I used the rights I had under federal law and demanded to review documents related to the sale and resale of our Union Hall. Contrary to the current leadership's assertions that there was nothing wrong with the building sale, the deal was riddled with problems.

*Three dummy corporations were established for the purposes of purchasing our Union Hall. Still to this day, the names of the owners of those corporations have not been fully revealed.

*The whereabouts of the cash assets resulting from the sale was never fully explained to the union’s executive board or to the members of this union. As a result of my review of the records I found out that much of the money was invested in a mysterious corporation called Land of America. It was not, as Tate and Toussaint have said, initially invested solely in Treasury Bonds.

*The investment in Land of America Corp. was done to avoid Local 100 having to pay the capital gains tax on the profit made from the sale.

*Due to complete incompetence on the part of Watt, (Toussaint’s right hand man and Tate’s advisor) the Land of America scheme failed and we had to pay $8,000,000 in capital gains tax to the federal government.

*Toussaint claims he got top dollar for the building when he sold it for $60 million. It was sold at nearly the height of the Manhattan real estate market.

*A little more then a year later, the secret owners of the building "flipped " it for $90 million, making a quick $30,000,000 profit on our Union Hall. The second $90 million sale was accomplished, in my opinion, in a weaker real estate market.
Today we are paying rent on a building which we once owned. We went from earning millions of dollars in rent to paying millions of dollars in rent. Yet, Tate, Watt and the rest of the current leadership insists that the sale of the building was great for Local 100.

The Real Difference

In many ways, what happened to the building shows the real difference between me and Tate and the people running on our respective slates. I stood up to Toussaint when he was doing something wrong. I supported him when he was doing something right, but when the interests of the membership were at stake, I demonstrated I am willing to pay the personal price of doing what I know is right.

By contrast, a vote for Tate is a vote for Toussaint. Tate and the rest of his slate never stood up to Toussaint about selling the building or anything else. If United Invincible never could stand up for the members inside our union, how can they be expected to stand up for the members to management and others outside our union? The truth is most of the members know they can’t be trusted.

I have the proven experience of organizing workers to successfully stand-up to management. Please stand with me and thousands of your Union Sisters and Brothers and cast your vote for the entire Take Back Our Union slate. Vote today before it is too late.

Vote for Change

During the campaign, President Barrack Obama said: “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” President Obama is right. And your time is now.

Again, on behalf of every member running for 175 spots in this election on the Take Back Our Union slate, I thank you for putting your trust in change. You will not be disappointed.
John Samuelsen -To visit our campaign web site: http://www.tbou2009.org.

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Update-TWU Local 100 Ballots mail out June 2

Ballots for the TWU Local 100 union election were scheduled to be mailed our yesterday, June 2,2009. They must be received back at the American Arbitration Assoc. no later than June 22.

All members in good-standing as of June 1, 2009 are entitled to a ballot. If you do not receive a ballot by Friday, June 5, call the American Arbitration Assoc. at 1-800-529-5218 to have one sent to you. For more information about the TWU Local 100 election please visit : www.tbou2009.org

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Update -Gains or Losses?‏ By Steve Downs

In his May 29 “Message”, Roger Toussaint sums up the accomplishments of his presidency and calls on members to support Curtis Tate and his slate to carry on that work. While Toussaint, Tate and UI have tried to deny the contribution that TBOU supporters have made to defending and strengthening our union, TBOU has never denied that our union won some gains during Toussaint’s presidency.There have been gains under every Local 100 president. Even Damaso Seda (winning a 25/55 pension) and Willie James (reducing the pension contribution) made some progress. But, what every transit worker must ask themselves, whether about Seda, James, or Toussaint, is -- which is greater, the gains or the losses?

Toussaint highlights the Childcare and Training and Upgrade Funds. These are gains for the membership. But in the same contract that won those funds, Toussaint gave up the no lay-off clause, increased medical co-pays, and accepted a one-year wage freeze. That is a recurring loss that Local 100 members will feel every hour they work. Which is greater, the gains or the losses?Toussaint claims there has been a rapid fall in the number of disciplinary cases. In 2002, he promised that new contract language would eliminate 70% of disciplinary cases. There were more write-ups in 2004 than there had been in 2002. While there has been a decrease in write-ups in the last two years, Toussaint gave the TA the right to discipline people for “chronic absenteeism” – even when they are covered by doctor’s lines. Which is greater, the gains or the losses?Since 2001, the Local has created a Safety Dept. that conducts regular safety inspections and provides Safety Reps at night. During the same time, Toussaint allowed the stewards’ program to wither, squandering the enthusiasm and commitment of almost 1000 trained stewards. Now, after over three years with no stewards’ classes, the Local is training 25 stewards. Running true to form, critics of Toussaint are excluded. Which is greater, the gains or the losses?

Toussaint’s claim that, “More than 10,000 members a year take part in Union events, at the Hall and elsewhere.” should be taken with a few grains of salt. It includes members at Family Day and a lot of double counting at other events. Members socializing at union-sponsored events is a good thing. But attendance at division meetings is down; thousands of members have been shown that their votes on contracts don’t matter; hundreds of stewards have stopped being active; members in Maintenance of Way and MTA Bus were denied the right to elect their VPs when the positions became vacant; and, close to half the membership is in bad-standing. Which is greater, the gains or the losses?

It’s true that the Local, “prevented the imposition of a new, inferior pension tier.” But a 30/62 pension for new hires was already off the table before Toussaint called the strike in 2005. Then, instead of striking for things the members were ready to fight for (higher wages, improved benefits, better schedules, better treatment, etc.), Toussaint allowed the TA to define the issues in the strike. The strike was poorly prepared and led. Based on comments he made to members at the contract meetings in the Bronx and Brooklyn, it’s clear that Toussaint called the strike primarily to make it easier to sell the givebacks in it to the membership. The result? The 1.5% deduction for basic healthcare; fines against the union and its members; giving up the Dec. 15 contract expiration date; and, the union agreeing not to strike in the future. Toussaint’s refusal to recognize the membership’s rejection of the contract increased the numbers who refused to pay their dues. Which is greater, the gains or the losses?

If you think the gains during Toussaint’s administration are greater than the losses, you’ll probably vote for the Toussaint/Tate/Watt UI slate. If you acknowledge the gains, but recognize that the losses have been greater, cast your vote for the Take Back Our Union slate.--
Steve Downs Chair, T/O Division of TWU 100 to stay informed visited www.tbou.org daily

Thousands of Signatures of Support for Take Back Our Union- TBOU Candidates Run for 175 Positions

Because thousands of Local 100 members have signed petitions for Take Back Our Union, TBOU candidates are running for 175 spots in the Officer and Delegate's elections. They deserve your support.

In the last election, Toussaint's slate only won because multiple slates split the vote. This time is different - there is only one choice to make if you want change: Vote Take Back Our Union.
They talk big, but the truth is they don't know how to negotiate a good contract, how to unite the membership and how to even win a strike. We now have a Union with no headquarters building, no money and no contract for most of the members.

In private lines some shops have worked without a contract for years. They are still in arbitration over the 2006 MTA bus contract. They took away our right to vote and put the 2009 TA, OA and MTA bus contract into binding arbitration. They play politics with peoples' lives. Regional bus and the loss of seniority rights are threatened, but they won't tell anyone what is in the new contract until after the election. You know why.

Our jobs are under attack. In stations, booths are being closed. In subways, we face trains without conductors. Our benefits are under attack. First they gave up the union's health fund, and then they agreed we have to pay the 1.5 % for health insurance.
Our wages are under attack. The newspapers say we might not even get a wage increase in the next contract.

Its time we had real leadership at Local 100. We need to bring everyone together. We have to stop the corruption at the Union and start respecting every member for who they are. We must rebuild Local 100 and again make it a strong, powerful Union that can get good contracts.
Vote for Change - Vote Take Back Our Union (TBOU)

For more information, please check out our website at www.tbou2009.org

Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Update-Dues deadline is June 1

Monday, June 1, is the deadline to have your dues paid up if you want to vote in the upcoming TWU Local 100 election.

Any member whose dues were paid up by May 15 is supposed to have their name on the master list being used to mail the ballots. These members should automatically mailed to their address.

Any member who pays their back dues between May 15 and June 1 is entitled to a ballot, but will have to call the Election Committee to make sure it is mailed.

If you're planning on paying your dues by June 1, don't wait until the last minute. Pay as soon as possible to make sure it's credited in time.For more information go to www.tbou2009.org

Take Back Our Union (TBOU)-Update-In the Transit and Transport unions

http://www.uniondemocracy.org/UDR/190-In_the_Transit_and_Transport_unions.htm
From the March-April 2009 issue of Union Democracy Review #178
In the Transit and Transport unions :

New York City's Local 100, the big union of subway and bus workers is about to hold elections wrapped in confusion, complex and contrived. Votes are to be cast in July and then sequestered in storage until December when they will be counted. This odd system was concocted by incumbent president Roger Toussaint and confirmed in a local referendum. He had a rationale for proposing this odd system, but this reporter forgets what it was and finds it not worthwhile to research it.

The local lost its dues checkoff rights after an unlawful strike, and so the good standing of potential voters will be subject to challenge. Half of the 38,000 membership is now in bad standing so many will be ineligible to vote. Apart from that, in the years since the strike, Toussaint has removed elected division representatives and declared them ineligible for falling behind in dues. Some claim that union records would show that they had in fact actually paid. But who's looking?

Meanwhile, Toussaint has taken a job with the international and will not run for reelection. His heir apparent and candidate for president is Curtis Tate, who has a more amiable reputation than the heavy-handed Toussaint. The leading opposition candidate for president, John Samuelsen, had once been in the Toussaint camp until he was cast out for mildly criticizing the president. His candidacy got a big boost when it was endorsed by Steve Downs, a founder and leader of the now defunct New Directions caucus. Toussaint was originally elected president as the New Direction reform candidate, but the group fell apart after he turned out to be more authoritarian than his predecessor. For more information on the TWU Local 100 Election visit http://www.tbou2009.org/

Compare Toussaint and Friends Raises to Yours‏ by Steve Downs

Toussaint got us a 3% raise for 2006. For the same year, he gave himself a 17% increase. In 2007, when our wages went up 4%, Toussaint gave himself a 7% boost. He went from $91,920 in 2006 to $115,475 ($141,928 after expenses) in 2008. (Don’t take our word for it, go to www.tbou2009.org and click on the link to the Union’s financial report.)

Toussaint was generous to his friends, too. Ed Watt was up 22% from 2006 to 2008. Curtis Tate got an 8.2% boost from 2007 to 2008. And Brian Clarke got an 11% bump for the same year.

All of this happened despite layoffs of clerical staff and Toussaint supposedly imposing a 10% pay cut on the officers and staff in 2007 when the dues check-off was lost. And it happened despite the Local by-laws limiting raises for officers and staff to the same percentage increase negotiated for members at the TA.It's time for them to go ,vote the entire Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Slate.

Steve Downs Chair, T/O Division of TWU Local 100

There Is No Democracy Without Choice‏ by Steve Downs

Can you believe that Toussaint’s handpicked Elections Committee disqualified a candidate for being 18 cents in arrears on his dues? Or that another candidate was knocked off the ballot after he received a written decision explicitly accepting his evidence and qualifying him for the ballot? Believe it!

The Toussaint/Tate/Watt team is going after members in good-standing -- people who paid their dues throughout the months when there was not dues check-off -- and treating them as if they never paid. These members, who faithfully paid their dues, are being treated worse than those who scabbed during the strike.

This isn’t really about how they’re treating potential candidates, though. It’s about how they’re treating the members. Afraid that they might lose, the Toussaint/Tate/Watt team is doing everything they can to deny the members a choice when it comes time to vote.But what can you expect from the people who ignored your vote on the contract and prevent the officers you choose from representing you?

Steve Downs Chair, T/O Division of TWU 100 for the latest news and updates on the upcoming TWU election go to www.TBOU2009.org

10,000 Signatures in Support of Take Back Our Union

Almost 10,000 Local 100 petition signatures were submitted for Take Back Our Union(TBOU). That’s a lot of support. Members will have the right to vote for TBOU candidates running for 175 spots in the Officer and Delegate’s elections.

Last time, Toussaint’s slate won with less than a majority because multiple slates split the vote. This time is different. There are only two slates. It’s us or them.There is a clear choice. Keep them in office or vote for positive change. Let’s all work together to rebuild Local 100 and make it a strong, powerful union that can win us good contracts.

Toussaint Admits: No MTA Contract before Election in January, Toussaint said it would only be a few weeks before we got our contract. This week, he said the arbitration was only half done. That means no contract before the election. You also know what that means – Toussaint’s contract will be bad news for the membership.The newspapers say we may get zeros ($0.00s). It could be even worse.Tate, Watt and Roberts just stood there and let Roger Toussaint decide to go to binding arbitration and make Toussaint the Union’s arbitrator. The only Local 100 member with a vote on the contract is now Roger Toussaint. We believe every member should have the right to vote on their contract.Take Back Our UnionTake Back Our Union will win good contracts and protect our job security.

We will rebuild Local 100 by organizing, mobilizing and uniting all the members in a Union that has real power in the subways, busses and in the halls of government to get us good contracts.

Vote : John Samuelsen for President Israel Rivera for Secretary-Treasurer Angel Giboyeaux for Administrative Vice President & Benita Johnson for Recording Secretary
For More Information: http://www.tbou2009.org/

TWU Local 100 Election has become an all out Circus by Christine Williams

The new bylaw changes have turned this union election into an all-out circus. In the past, the votes were counted as soon as they were cast. Now, although the votes are cast in June, the results aren't released until December -- six months later. This bylaw change was supposedly needed to save money, but will still cost money, for storing the ballots and protecting them from being tampered with. And if the union is trying so hard to save money, why create a administrative VP position paying $100,000? How does that save money? I know what they''re going to say: the members voted for it. But only 5000 members voted out of 38,000, and it took a whole week just to count that. Do you think this amendment to the bylaws helps build the trust in this union? In all these years this union has never had an administrative VP in the top 4. Why now?



Another obstacle in this circus -- I mean union election -- dues payment. This issue is a weird one, because TBOU candidates are getting DQ letters left and right. If you paid your dues by check, look out; just because you sent your check in before the 15th doesn't mean it was credited to your account on time. And even if you pay every month by check and sent the amounts on the payment schedule set up by the union you might have gotten a letter. In my case I paid a year in advance and have been in good standing since 2007, even receiving a refund for overpayment. And I got a DQ letter. After further review by the" impartial" TWU election committee, which has at least two people on the local 100 payroll, it was determined that my letter was sent as an "oversight." I wonder how many UI candidates were a couple days late on payments, and how many actually received DQ letters? How can the election committee be truly impartial if they don't have a representative of both slates running in this election on the committee? One of many questions that will remain a mystery, but the worst part of this dirty tactic of sending members on the TBOU slate DQ letters is you only have 48 hours to respond so had I not responded to the letter I would have been out as a candidate even after paying my dues in advance.



It's not only TBOU candidates who are getting caught up with the dues issue but also rank and file members who want to get back in good standing. Recently, letters went out to the membership on how much back dues was owed to get back in good standing. Only members in good standing will be able to vote in union elections. That makes sense: pay your dues, get a ballot. But if you pay by check, look out! Now they are holding onto checks for weeks without crediting them to the accounts. In some cases the checks were mailed back. Some members even got letters informing them that they would not get a ballot to vote in the election. It looks like they don't want some members to vote in the upcoming TWU local 100 election.

The next act in their circus is the weird survey. 1st, someone calls your house and asks of you would like to take a quick survey. Then, they ask you lots of questions on how you feel about Take Back Our Union(TBOU.) The next set of questions are about UI and what your opinions are on the UI candidates. I'm not making this up. Actual members are calling me about this wacky survey. What is the purpose of this? If UI really wants to know how the members feel about UI candidates, they should give the members a fair chance to vote for TBOU after all almost 10,000 TWU Local 100 members signed TBOU petitions to get us on the ballot. If you are contacted by the union or have any questions give us a call at (646) 321-5213 or send us an e-mail to TBOUStations@yahoo.com .

Please visit our website daily http://www.tbou.org/ to stay informed on breaking news inside local 100 and all labor news. By Christine Williams Stations Department Candidate for Executive Board on the Take Back Our Union (TBOU) Slate.

Rigged Elections by Israel Rivera Jr

Rigged Elections? by Israel Rivera Jr

Did you ever think Local 100 elections might be rigged? The thought has occurred to many of us. Lets look at the facts:Local 100 wont release the list of paid dues members. Because many currently elected officers running on the United invisible did not pay their dues themselves! Ask any of them to show you their dues statement. They wont.

Toussaint and his hand picked crew removed many democratically elected officers you the membership elected! Do you think things will be different with his handpicked successor and most of Rogers own staff still in place? Dictators never give up power freely, history has proven this time and time again.

How often did you wonder quietly about what really happened to our contract negotiations? Why did the Toussaint/Watt/Tate team again violate the membership by excluding every officer we elected to represent us? Local 100 officers cower in fear as local 100 continues to hopelessly slide into draconian rule.

For three terms we have hoped and prayed for 20-50 to no avail. Then we were lead on a catastrophic strike that further drained every member of his hard earned money as we were hit with massive penalties and Local 100 was severely crippled financially for years to come.

Our Union Hall is sold for 60 million dollars. Then resold by the buyer to the tune of 90 million! Making some very lucky person a 30 million dollar profit within 18 months during the worst real estate slump in nearly a 100 years. This alone cries out for a criminal investigation. But your officers are fear full of raising any questions and facing the dictators wrath.

Roger Toussaint negotiates himself a very nice cushy job at the TWU of America, our parent Union for a $160,000 a year. Then appoints his successor Curtis Tate to run our Union as he misleads the membership into believing we are finally rid of this parasitic embolism. So why then does non-president Toussaint change the locks to Recording Secretary Darlene Lawson's office and confiscate the section and division meeting records Darlene Lawson is lawfully the guardian of?. Is he now planning on altering the monthly meeting records? Perhaps some one on the United Invincible slate missed a few meetings and didn't qualify for re-election? One thing is for certain, he has violated another elected officers authority.Our union is as corrupt as many other unions were under organized crime decades ago. Yet, we the membership do absolutely nothing about it. The list goes on and on. I can sit here for a day or two and go on endlessly. We know the stories, we live them every day. The enemy might have started out being the MTA, but Toussaint/Watt/Tate have changed the map. They are definitely not our saviors.

What options short of armed revolution do we have? Well, a powerful weapon is at your fingertips. Your Vote! Soon as the ballots start arriving at your homes the United Invincible team may ask if you have received your ballot in the mail. Innocent enough right? No, not at all. That's just a pitch to the followup question when they now ask you to bring your ballot in should you have any questions. They will ask you to turn it over to them. They will tell you something along the lines of " relax I'll send it in for you just leave it blank" Dont do it! Do not give away your voice or your vote.Stand tall, vote them out. Lets clean out 80 West End. Send them packing once and for all.