PORT ANGELES — Contracted paratransit bus drivers in Clallam County have voted unanimously to strike.
Paul Bachtel, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 587 president, said Monday’s vote to strike was 25-0.
The elderly and disabled riders who rely on Paratransit Services for transportation will have a few days to plan — the strike will not start for at least a week.
“It won’t take place yet,” Bachtel said.
“We’ll take that [vote to strike] back to the bargaining table. It will be up to the members to decide the date the strike will start.”
The union drivers will meet on Monday and Tuesday to plan the next course of action.
Bremerton-based Paratransit Services is a nonprofit organization that has been serving Clallam County since 1988.
The company operates under a contract with Clallam Transit.
3-year contract sought
Bachtel said Paratransit Services has not been responsive to the union’s proposal for a three-year contract.
But Randy Grove, Paratransit Services operations and human resources director, has said the company has been negotiating with the union.
The Seattle-based union is asking for pay raises settled in previous contracts. Grove has said the union is asking for more.
Local 587 represents bus drivers in Clallam, Jefferson and King counties.
The strike would only occur in Clallam County.
If its members decide to stop working, it would be the union’s first strike in about 30 years. The last strike happened during a contract dispute with King County Metro, Bachtel said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
