S.F. city attorney files legal charges to halt Muni sickout City attorney calls protest illegal, may seek damages

Bus drivers exchange a fist bump at the maintenance yard at 23rd and Indiana streets as more operators returned to work. Bus drivers exchange a fist bump at the maintenance yard at 23rd and Indiana streets as more operators returned to work. Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 19 Caption Close S.F. city attorney files legal charges to halt Muni sickout 1 / 19 Back to Gallery

As Muni limped through the third day of an apparent operator sickout Wednesday, city officials moved to snuff out the protest by filing legal charges against the operators' union and vowing to seek financial damages. The transit system remained hobbled by the drivers' action, but managed to roll out far more buses and trains than on Monday and Tuesday.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera filed legal charges Wednesday with the state Public Employment Relations Board. He alleged that Transport Workers Union Local 250-A, despite taking a neutral position on a proposed contract vote, privately urged its members to defeat the tentative agreement, then "fomented and supported" an illegal work stoppage by encouraging operators to call in sick.

"This is an unfortunate attempt by the union to get around a law and contract provisions they don't like," Herrera said. "The (City) Charter is clear that an impasse such as this one is resolved with neutral arbitration. Let's do what the law says, begin the arbitration process and get San Francisco moving again as soon as humanly possible."

While the sickout continued to affect the Bay Area's largest transit system on Wednesday, service seemed considerably improved.

Buses and light-rail vehicles, which had been spread across the city in a makeshift effort to haul as many passengers as possible Monday and Tuesday, returned to their regular routes, but the Municipal Transportation Agency still reported a serious shortage of transit operators reporting to work.

Cable car service was canceled, and only 440 of Muni's 600 vehicles were on the street. That number has shown steady improvement since Monday.

Passengers said they still faced longer-than-usual waits.

"I'm always late," said Christine Tuca, 21, waiting for a bus at Fifth and Market streets. "I'm getting tired of it."

In another action, the Municipal Transportation Agency threatened on Tuesday to seek financial damages from the labor union for lost revenue and other costs associated with the sickout.

Union's memo to members

Union officials declined to comment on the labor charges late Wednesday, saying they hadn't seen the filings. Local 250-A President Eric Williams did respond to the MTA's financial threat in a letter to members posted to the union's website.

"We have advised management that TWU Local 250-A has not directed, authorized or otherwise participated in any work stoppage," he wrote. "By this memo, I am informing all our members that any concerted sick out, or other job action, is not being authorized by or encouraged by Local 250-A. I am urging that all our members comply with their obligations under the MOU (memo of understanding) to only use sick leave for legitimate purposes."

Muni operators, like all city employees, are prohibited from striking. Herrera contends the sickout is illegal, as is the union's refusal to participate in an arbitration hearing mandated by the City Charter.

Muni spokesman Paul Rose said the agency hopes the sickout, which began Monday, continues to wane, but advised riders to be prepared for continued reduced service.

"It looks like we will be able to put more service out on the street Thursday," he said. "We remain cautiously optimistic that things are improving, but we really won't know until Thursday morning."

The city attorney's labor charge offers some insight into the negotiation process, which has been kept mostly confidential, unlike many recent Muni contract talks. Talks between the union and the city started in February and continued until May with the parties unable to reach an agreement.

Union delayed the vote

Following an agreed-upon impasse process, both sides met with a mediator/arbitrator and the independent third-party mediator recommended a tentative agreement. The union put it before its members for ratification, the filing says.

The union then delayed a ratification vote, irritating city officials. According to the document, when the city's labor relations manager called to complain about the delay, Williams, the union president, refused to tell him when the vote would be held, uttered, "F- you," and hung up.

On Saturday, an arbitrator, the same person who served as the contract mediator, is scheduled to meet with negotiators from labor and management.

City Charter provisions approved by voters in 2010 require that if union members reject the proposed contract, it goes to an arbitrator who cannot rule against Muni management's proposals unless the union can prove that its interests outweigh "the public interest in efficient and reliable transit." Union officials contend the standard is unfair.

The sickout follows Muni operators' rejection of a mediated contract proposal that calls for about 11.25 percent in raises over two years in exchange for workers paying 7.5 percent in pension contributions now covered by the MTA.

Union officials said the transit workers voted 1,198-47 against the proposed contract.

Union leaders have said they offered to return to the bargaining table, but that Muni declined to do so. But, according to the city attorney's complaint, union officials are the ones who have refused to attend.

Gabriel Zitrin, a spokesman for the city attorney's office, said that a meeting with the mediator/arbitrator is scheduled for Saturday but that the union's attorney sent a letter saying the union wouldn't attend.

"We hope they show up," he said.