Short extension halts weekend taxi strike plans
The threat of a weekend taxi strike was averted Friday when Las Vegas' second largest cab company and its drivers' union agreed to extend the current contract until Jan. 31.
Yellow Checker Star Transportation and the Industrial Technical Professional Employees Union negotiated Wednesday and Thursday with the assistance of a federal mediator but did not reach a deal. Neither side would discuss details.
Last week, union drivers voted to authorize a strike as early as 12:01 a.m. Sunday but never set a firm date. Both sides have operated under a contract that expired Sept. 30.
On Tuesday, the Nevada Taxicab Authority authorized giving each of the companies without labor problems as many as 30 operating permits known as medallions in the event of a strike. This would potentially help plug the gap created by a Yellow Checker Star strike, especially important during the busy New Year's Eve holiday and January convention calendar.
Authority administrator Charles Harvey was given the power to distribute the temporary strike medallions as he saw necessary to keep people moving. However, if the authority board has another meeting in January, the medallions will expire.
Yellow Checker Star holds one-fourth of the 2,409 medallions currently issued by the authority.
Company drivers voted down a proposed five-year contract in late November, dissatisfied by pay and working schedule provisions.
The valley's largest cab company, with five brands under the banner of Frias Transportation Management, has operated under extensions of a contract that expired Sept. 11. The company is due to sit down at the bargaining table again with the United Steelworkers Union Local 711A on Wednesday .
One contract proposal that proposed diluting the role of seniority in determining how aspects such as bidding on shifts and assigning cars was overwhelming voted down in October. No strike authorization vote has been taken.
Besides the terms of a deal, these talks have been clouded by disarray at the local.
Last month, the international union ousted local leadership and installed its own representatives in what is known as an administratorship after numerous complaints by rank-and-file members.
