The state agency overseeing public employee union bargaining agreements has rejected a bid by San Francisco Municipal Railway operators to halt newly bolstered Muni service.
California Public Employment Relations Board spokesman Les Chisholm said today that the board on Tuesday denied the request by Transport Workers Union Local 250-A to halt Muni’s restoration of more than half of the 10-percent service cuts it made in May.
The union had made the request in conjunction with an “unfair practices” allegation against Muni, noting the effects the service restorations would have on the operators, according to Chisholm.
Although the board denied the injunction, it is still considering the unfair practices allegation, Chisholm said.
Union officials were not immediately available for comment.
The service changes–which included extended and more frequent rail and bus service on several lines and took effect Saturday–restored 61 percent of the May service cuts, made due to budget difficulties at the time.
The SFMTA since received additional funding from local transportation agencies and made other budget efficiencies to make the restorations possible. The agency is working on a plan to restore the remaining cuts by Dec. 1.
