More than 600 Phoenix bus drivers are on strike after labor talks broke down.
Veolia Transportation Services and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433 failed to end a nearly two-year dispute over wage and benefit terms such as sick-leave accrual, retirement benefits and healthcare coverage.
Drivers walked off the job early Saturday. Phoenix officials say only about 21 percent of all buses will make their scheduled runs Saturday.
Phoenix mayor Greg Stanton, along with city council and public transit officials,?held a press conference Saturday at noon.
Stanton called for both sides to "Get back to the bargaining table," and he said, "You owe it to the people of the city."
At the press conference, the interim public transit director, Neal Young, said on an average weekend approximately 55,000 people rely on the public transportation.
Riders are urged to check the Valley Metro web site to see if their route is affected.
Phoenix spokesman Matt Heil says the striking Veolia drivers operate 31 of the 46 routes in Phoenix. Another 55 Valley Metro routes in other parts of the metropolitan area aren't affected.
The next scheduled meeting between Veolia Transportation Services and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433 is set for March 21, according to Stanton.
About two dozen bus drivers were protesting Saturday at the Public Transit South Division.
A news crew is headed to a news conference with Veolia at 2PM and will have updates soon.
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. CBS5 (Meredith Corporation) contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.kpho.com/story/17127627/phoenix-bus-service-hit-by-driver-union-strike
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