Read our editorial on the significance of strikes here.
Transit worker correspondent
On June 27, 99.5% of the almost 1,500 transit workers belonging to the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1091, in Austin, TX, voted to authorize a strike against our employer, Keolis NA, a subsidiary of the French multinational Keolis.
Keolis NA took over transit operations for the Capital Metropolitan Transit Authority in January 2024, constituting their largest US bus contract. CapMetro transports over 72,000 passengers on average per weekday, forming a critical piece in Austin’s logistics infrastructure.
ATU 1091, which represents mechanics, maintenance and administrative staff, objected to Keolis NA taking on the contract from the very beginning, pointing to a robust history of union busting and a lack of communication between the prospective company and the union. Every one of those concerns has been validated.
ATU 1091 began reaching out to Keolis to arrange face-to-face contract negotiations in August of 2025, hoping to resolve any conflicts prior to expiration to maintain continuity of service for the people of Austin. The previous labor contract expired at the end of 2025. Keolis NA responded to these good faith efforts with a campaign of stalling and stonewalling. Since beginning serious negotiations, Keolis has been obstinate and obstructionist to the extreme, quibbling over long-established contract language, agreeing to and then rescinding many provisions, attempting to bribe and split off segments of the workforce through separate deals, and generally being disrespectful of the needs of the workers.
Union negotiators have demanded a wage sufficient for workers to live in the city they serve, full benefits for all full-time workers, a reduction in spread time for safer, more attentive drivers, better training, and an improved retirement plan.
The demand for reduced spread time, in particular, is pressing. Many drivers are forced to work split shifts, driving for a few hours in the morning and more at night, with periods of “rest” in between that are brief and anything but restful. Factoring in the largely-unpaid split, a worker for example may be away from home and in uniform for up to thirteen hours while only being paid for eight or nine.
Keolis NA is rehashing a playbook they have used all over the world, and they sent their favorite hatchet man to do it: Mike Ake, Regional VP. Mike secretly colluded with local corporate media and transit authorities during a grueling multi-year labor fight by Teamsters Local 533 in Reno, NV. He was also present for another strike by the ATU in Loudoun County in 2023. Keolis has a clear methodology: stall out negotiations, either by stonewalling, delaying, or refusing to appear. At the last second, offer an unacceptable proposal, let the workers go on strike, and begin smear campaigns targeting the striking workers, sewing division among the working-class ridership to turn them against their natural allies, the drivers and mechanics who get them home safely every day.
Unfortunately for Mike, GM Duane Eskierka, Assistant GM Cynthia Rasco, Keolis NA CEO Brad Thomas, and the parasitic capital interests they serve, the workers of ATU 1091 are forewarned and forearmed against these pathetic tactics. We are unanimous in our willingness to fight, the people are behind us, and we will win and strike a blow for every worker in this city.
We are looking for worker correspondents: cashiers, drivers, nurses, construction workers, cleaners, warehouse staff—anyone who wants to report on what’s really happening at work. Share a story, a tip, a victory, or a fightback. We’ll help you turn it into an article. Contact us at theworkerpaper@proton.me.
Image: A CapMetro bus at University of Texas at Austin, 2015. Credit: Spheroidite on Wikimedia Commons.
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