Local 100 Fightback

There was an important Victory and a Big Step Forward today in the NY State Supreme Court in the fight to put an end to MTA Management's for-profit scheme to attack and undermine current and future retiree health care.

A Temporary Restraining Order was issued in NY State Supreme Court stopping NYC Transit and the TWU Local 100 "union leadership" from going forward with their plans to implement a switch to a Medicare Advantage ONLY coverage plan for retirees and their attempt to deny these retirees their right to choose traditional Medicare.

As we know, this massive attack on all current and future retiree healthcare benefits was engineered by our traitorous union "leaders" working hand in hand with our vicious employers, the MTA Bosses, to cut costs and pocket money that was promised for decades to be used to fund our Retiree healthcare. This giveback or sweetener was given as a massive gift to our Bosses to enable these cowardly "union leaders" to encourage union members to agree to attack retirees in order to get slightly less pathetic "wage increases" that we all know are effective wage cuts when compared to the real cost of living in NYC.

But because these retirees united to build a collective self-defense against these attacks they have been able to drag all of the parties conspiring against current and future retirees into Court to explain why they think they have the right to turn their backs on their decades-long promises to fund Retiree healthcare with no diminished benefits or denial of choice of coverage.

Their fight was clearly inspired by the successful legal challenge of NYC Retirees to Mayor Eric Adams and NYC's plans to force them into Medicare Advantage plans. And both groups of retirees have worked together to support each other's struggles at every step of the way. The unity of these struggles should be a source of inspiration for Local 100 union members to understand the need for our own struggles to be based on this kind of working class Solidarity.

The Local 100 Fightback Coalition would like to congratulate all of the Retirees who stepped up and organized this legal challenge to these attacks. We stand in complete Solidarity with these retirees in their fight against this for-profit scheme to attack and undermine current retiree health care. We strongly encourage all working class people to support this struggle in anyway that you can.

No donation is too small, but please give as much as you can to help support this struggle in all of our names and the names of all future Transit workers. We also encourage all working people to spread the word as well.

You can donate to the NYC Transit Retirees Legal fund online at:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QJRJJXEVRMT88

To reach out to the organizers of
TWU100R please check out their
page online here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/347409532692304/?ref=share&mibextid=NSMWBT

Attached to this Facebook post is an email that was sent out tonight to TWU Local 100 Recording Secretary LaTonya Crisp calling for an emergency TWU Local 100 Executive Board meeting to address serious concerns about the lack of action in response to very serious allegations of sexist violence made against Local 100 President Richard Davis. The email also calls for the Executive Board to immediately place President Richard Davis on an unpaid leave of absence until the merits of these charges are heard and decided in NY State Supreme Court. (A copy of this employee's complaints in NYS Supreme Court are attached as screenshots as well)

The union members who signed this email were:

Conductor John Ferretti,
T/O Seth Rosenberg,
T/O Anthony Steiniger,
T/O Tom Gruttemeyer,
T/O Ray Reigadas,
Bus Operator Celso Garcia,
and Tower Operator
Jonathan Beatrice.

The Local 100 Fightback Coalition strongly encourages all Union members who are concerned about the behavior that Mr. Davis is accused of to speak out as well and demand that the Executive Board publicly explain to the members of TWU Local 100 what actions they are prepared to take in response.

The battle against the MTA and the TWU Local 100 union leadership's illegal conspiracy to force NYC Transit Retirees into the for profit scam known as Medicare Advantage is continuing and moving forward to a legal challenge in the NY State Courts.

A group of NYC Transit Retirees are now leading that fight back and organizing for a legal defense fund to demand a Temporary Restraining Order and a court fight to put an end to these illegal actions.

The Local 100 Fightback Coalition stands in complete Solidarity with these retirees in their fight on behalf of all NYS workers to put an end to MTA Management's for-profit scheme to attack and undermine current retiree health care and those of all of us when we retire. We strongly encourage all working class people to support this struggle in anyway that you can.

Supporting these Retirees in their ongoing fight to end these attacks once and for all is a very necessary first step to building the working class Solidarity that will all need to survive in the times of economic crisis that we all face. It's a matter of demonstating self respect and building a collective self-defense against both our murderous Bosses and our traitorous, Boss-loving union leadership's plans to cut costs and pocket money that was promised for decades to be used to fund our Retiree healthcare.

No donation is too small, but please give as much as you can to help support this struggle in all of our names and the names of all future Transit workers. We also encourage all working people to spread the word as well.

You can donate to the NYC Transit Retirees Legal fund online at:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QJRJJXEVRMT88

To reach out to the organizers of
TWU100R please check out their
page online here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/347409532692304/?ref=share&mibextid=NSMWBT

Who says there is no good news anymore.

Time for a couple of drinks to celebrate the fact that this racist, genocidal monster no longer draws breath and pollutes the earth with his miserable, murderous existence.

Good riddance to this hateful pile of human garbage, who is quite literally directly responsible for the deaths of millions and dozens of attempts at ethnic cleansing and genocide all over the world.

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/henry-kissinger-war-criminal-dead-1234804748/

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/henry-kissinger-dies_n_6376933ae4b0afce046cb44f

https://www.thenation.com/article/world/kissinger-100-crimes-watergate/

It looks like the TWU Local 100 Union leadership just allowed the MTA to force injured employees into a new for-profit Managed Care scam. This is an MTA Bosses' dream and a massive attack on employees who are assaulted or otherwise injured on duty, because it will make sure that all of our medical care comes from the MTA's bought and paid for Doctors who will have every interest to do what they MTA wants them to do--- force injured employees back to work as quickly as possible.

Just like their supposed "Independent Medical Examiners" we all know that the MTA will now control these Doctors future employment and Corvel will have every interests to keep down the MTA's costs for this medical care.

The key language:

"What if I want to see an out-of-network doctor? Use of an in-network doctor is mandatory for the first 30 days. After 30 days from initial treatment, employees will be able to opt-out of the Certified PPO if they choose. Employees will have to notify MTA, and MTA will have the right to require a second opinion."

The current Local 100 Union leadership is an abortion of what it means to be a Union in any way. They are a disgrace and an embarassment to all of our Union members and the once proud history of this Union. We must remove this virus of a Union leadership as soon as possible or it will destroy us all.

There is an important Special Election in TWU Local 100 for "A division" Vice-chair of the Train Operators' Division.

More than ever, we need union officers who will actually stand up to the MTA and fight back against its unfair discipline, unsafe working conditions, and concessionary contracts.

Our Union desperately needs a truly independent voice, who we know will stand up to the MTA and actually fight for transit workers' real demands to be heard. Ray Reigadas is that voice, and he deserves your vote.

If you think the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict is too complicated for you to understand please take the time to listen to this Democracy Now interview with American author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates. In the interview Coates talks about his experiences in recently traveling to the West Bank and his shock in finding out how familiar the conditions were to him given his experiences of racism in the United States and those of his family members during Jim Crow in the U.S. South before the Civil Rights movement.

https://youtu.be/_df_u7yJj3k?si=OOffmfmoQ_RJve3a

Ta-Nehisi Coates Speaks Out Against Israel's "Segregationist Apartheid Regime" After West Bank Visit As pressure builds for a ceasefire after 27 days of Israel's bombardment of Gaza, author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates joins us in a broadcast exclusive in...

https://youtu.be/rqjO5Z9Lt_M?si=i2W4BqPzouuFxhzW

This 2nd longer interview of Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef by British "journalist" Piers Morgan is 🔥🔥🔥 and a must watch for anyone who want to truly understand some of the history and roots of the violence and unrest in Palestine.

Bassem does a great job of providing a historical basis for the current situation that allows the voices of Palestine and other peoples of the region to actually be heard and attempts to provide an understanding of how they think about what has happened since the Nakba of 1948 and long before it.

You will have to suffer through Piers Morgan's congenital repetition of the lies and distortions of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and the U.S. State Department but it is very much worth your time.

If you haven't already seen the 1st interview which has over 20 million views, please watch that video first, which is available online here:

https://youtu.be/4idQbwsvtUo?si=kasHHEvyDw21G0gs

Piers Morgan vs Bassem Youssef Round 2 | Two-Hour Special Interview After last week's groundbreaking interview on the Israel-Hamas war, Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef returns to Piers Morgan Uncensored - this time face-to-f...

A powerful advertisement published in today's New York Times calling for an IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE and an End to the Siege On Gaza.

https://youtu.be/4idQbwsvtUo?si=1W94gvsTlOeT1SlC

Another must watch interview about the Hamas terror attacks and the Israeli government's war crimes and genocidal carpet bombing of Palestinian civilians and their apartment buildings, hospitals, journalists and paramedics in response. Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef is known the "John Stewart of Egypt" and here he uses his comedic talent to great effect to publicly cook and expose British TV "journalist"
Piers Morgan who consistently functions as a parrot and a stenographer for the Israeli Defense Forces and racist, lying imperialist talking points talking points and narratives in general.

🔥 🔥 🔥

https://youtu.be/hPRua0u7hYY?si=7W2F3PWDn08Di1s2

Must watch interview.

Marc Lamont Hill of Aljazeerah English is an important and eloquent voice in the media for Palestinian human rights. And he has paid a significant price for his passion and advocacy. He was fired by CNN for being an outspoken critic of the Israeli government' lies, their war crimes and human rights violations. He has also called out the racist and dehumanizing "news coverage" that the Palestinian people face every day from the corporate news media.

It is great news that he was able to speak out on such an important media platform.

Marc Lamont Hill Speaks On Israel-Hamas War, International Law, History + More Subscribe NOW to The Breakfast Club: http://ihe.art/xZ4vAcAGet MORE of The Breakfast Club:► LISTEN LIVE: https://bit.ly/3r17qJm► CATCH UP on What You Missed:...

Twitch streamer Hasan Piker has raised over $1 million dollars in just the last 6 days through outreach to his online community to aid Palestinian children and refugees with medical assistance.

The fundraiser is ongoing as he covers the conflict live and Israel has shut off internet access, food, water and electricity to 2.3 million people in Gaza.

The Local 100 Fightback Coalition strongly encourages any NYC Transit workers, all working people and others who stand in Solidarity with the cause of Palestinian self-
determination, their human, civil and democratic rights to donate whatever they can to support this fundraising effort.

Fundraiser to donate:
https://donate.tiltify.com//palestinian-medical-assistance

All funds go to approved Palestinian Medical Organizations, including ANERA, Palestinian Children's Relief Fund, Palestine Red Crescent Society, and Medical Aid for Palestinians

You can also follow
Hasanabi live coverage: twitch.tv/hasanabi or follow Hasan Piker on Youtube, , on Twitter at , on Instagram , on Threads

https://www.threads.net//post/CyrFNaWSiNV/?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

There were massive protests all over the world today:

Dublin, London, Chicago, Los Angeles, Sydney, Australia, Amsterdam, Washington DC

Jordan Uhl (@jordanuhl_) on Threads • Find a protest near you: CeasefireToday.com

Even in the heart of imperialism
✊✊✊

A massive show of outrage against the brutal Israeli Apartheid state and their campaign of ethnic cleansing, occupation and bombing of Gaza and support for a
Free Palestine 🇵🇸 🇵🇸 🇵🇸 !!!

https://www.threads.net//post/CyriaiXJtUe/?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Apartheid Emerald Mine (@apartheidemeralds) on Threads • Even in the heart of imperialism ✊✊✊ Free Palestine!!!

TONIGHT at 9PM, please join the Local 100 Fightback Coalition as we talk about the topic that no one wants to talk about, but WE MUST.

To be clear, the horrific and murderous Hamas' terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians can NEVER be justified. We do not support in any way any acts of terrorism against civilians, and there is no way to EVER justify anti-human violence against unarmed civilians for just existing and living their lives.

But that does not change the fact that these attacks were the inevitable consequence of the brutal occupation, Apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and mass murder that Palestinians have faced for decades at the hands of Israel. To analyze where the roots of the violence we are seeing comes from is not in any way to excuse any act of terrorism.

The brutal conflict between the fascistic Apartheid state of Israel and the Palestinian people is a world historic struggle, that has massive implications across the world for every struggle for human, civil and democratic rights.

The almost complete silence of the US Labor movement in response to the Israeli creation of the world's largest open air prison or concentration camp in Gaza, their government's carpet bombing and collective punishment of the Palestinian people is shameful and disgraceful.

Their silence also exposes the labor movement's political and moral bankruptcy, and its' cowardice in understanding what should be the historic role of the labor movement. Which has always been to organize a collective self- defense of the working class internationally against any and all fascistic attempts to destroy and wipe out democratic, human and civil rights.

We cannot be neutral on these issues no matter how much we would like to turn our eyes away from the horrors that imperialism has created in this region by weaponizing the justified fears and anxieties of two oppressed peoples in their struggle for self determination or their "solution" which is a colonial settler Apartheid relationship that is an existential threat for both peoples.

Please join us for this important conversation, feel free to comment widely and please Share and Like this Advertisement and our Facebook Live Stream event on social media so that other workers can also be aware that this conversation is happening and join the discussion as well.

Where does the majority of Crime in our Society really come from?

Who is the cause of the majority of the mass suffering of working class people and communities face every day under corporate capitalist rule?

Why is this crime almost NEVER covered in the news media?

Why are politicians who say they are so concerned about crime and constantly prey upon on worker's justified fears and anxiety about crime, never once say a word about the crime that affects most worker's of our lives most directly?

The Very REAL Victims of Wage Theft While stories about retail theft and other crimes dominate the news, one particular crime that harms hundreds of thousands of American workers rarely gets as...

The robbery needs to stop? WTF are they talking about?

When it’s contract time and I see articles like this one, I’m sure glad that I watched Mr. Rogers as a child and learned how to use my imagination in his “Neighborhood of Make Believe.” When you’re employed by NYCT being able to pretend sure comes in handy around contract time. There is a pattern to all of this, we just pretend not to see it.
We have to pretend that the same group of players have our best interests at heart. We have to pretend that below the COL raises are “fair” and are “ real economic gains.” We have to pretend that organizations like the ostensibly non-partisan, Empire Group cares about the people who actually run the subways and buses and the riders. We have to pretend not to see the relationship between our union, the Governor, the think tanks and the big money campaign donors.

They really don’t want us to wake up out of our daydream and fight. All it will take is for enough of us to say enough is enough to stop this merry-go-round from spinning.

New Great Train Robbery: Runaway MTA overtime costs A new Empire Center report shows MTA overtime hit $1.3 billion last year.

SAG-AFTRA, the Film Actors union is on strike. Most members are not movie stars and just scrape by. The movie studios and the streaming services are making huge profits and the actors, along with the writers who have been on strike for a while now deserve decent wages and benefits, along with protection from AI. The Local 100 Fightback Coalition stands in Solidarity with SAG-AFTRA and supports them in their strike!!!

Why Actors Are Going on Strike SAG-AFTRA and major studios failed to reach an agreement on contract negotiations

If you are a TWU Local 100 union member in good standing and haven't received a Contract Ballot, you need to call the American Arbitration Association at 1 (800) 529-5218 and tell them you need a Duplicate Ballot mailed out ASAP. We have been told that the last day to request at Duplicate Ballot is this Wednesday, July 12.

But we strongly recommend that you call today or tomorrow because the later you call the more likely it is that our "Union leadership" will be able to run out the clock on your right to Vote which they have a long history of doing. The Contract Ballots will be counted next Monday, July 17, 2023.

The Local 100 Fightback Coalition strongly encourages NYC Transit workers to Vote No on this proposed Contract.

That is because this proposed Contract:

● Opens the door to historic attacks on retiree healthcare benefits,

● Contains ZERO Hazard Pay despite NYC transit workers suffering mass death, infection and Long COVID at the hands of the MTA Bosses during the pandemic, not to mention all of the other hazardous working conditions we face regularly, and

● Contains below inflation "wage increases" that are effective wage cuts and ZERO ongoing Cost of Living Adjustments or COLA to help us keep pace with the cost of living in the future.

We deserve a REAL Contract struggle that demands respect for our lives, our families and our communities and unites us with other workers facing the same conditions!!!

This is not respect, this is Disrespect!!!

This CONtract does not honor our sacrifice, it is a slap in the face!!!

This CONtract is not a Victory, it is a Surrender without ANY Struggle AT ALL!!!

Hell No!!!

Let's send them back to the Bargaining table and demand a REAL fight back for what NYC Transit workers actually want and need and not what our murderous Bosses think we are worth.

https://youtu.be/whJ-zNqAICM

Great News!!!

The NYC Retirees have won a Temporary Restraining Order to stop Mayor Adams' and the Metropolitan Labor Council's plan to force all NYC retirees to switch from Traditional to for-profit Medicare Advantage plans.

"The decision temporarily enjoins the City, until further order of the court, from requiring any City retirees and their dependents from being removed from their current health insurance plans and from being required to either enroll in an Aetna MA Plan or seek their own coverage. The court said they plaintiffs met the standards for winning a preliminary injunction, as 1) they have a likelihood of succeeding on the merits of their first cause of action, which alleges the city made a promise of future Medicare benefits that retirees relied on "to their detriment" (making a decision based on that promise that concretely affects them, such as not taking another job), 2) there would be "irreparable harm" if they have to wait to complete litigation before receiving a court decision, and 3) the "balance of equities" (is the harm greater from granting or not granting an injunction?) favor the plaintiffs.

It can be difficult to appeal from the issuance of an injunction, as normally appeals are heard only from final decisions. Nevertheless, it's fair to assume the City will appeal.

Meanwhile, the judge will begin a process in which he requires the City to provide evidence that satisfies him that, for example, retirees won't be denied coverage/treatment they would have received under Medicare."

WE WON the TRO!!! YES WE WON AGAIN!!!

https://www.threads.net/

We have a new Local 100 Fightback Coalition Threads profile now. It's a community discussion app like Twitter without the N***s. Lol

If you already follow and Like our Coalition on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram please follow our Coalition on Threads. We will be posting content there soon. Just opened the account today.

**kElon
Bye Twitter dumpster 🔥 hellscape

www.threads.net

Many TWU Local 100 members have told us that they have not received their Contract Ballot, despite the claim that they were supposedly mailed out on Friday, June 26. That is now 4 mail days already, which is more than enough time for these ballots to gave been received.

Our Coalition members, will be calling the American Arbitration Association tomorrow at (800) 529-5218 to demand that a Duplicate Ballot be sent to our home addresses, and we would strongly suggest that any TWU Local 100 member in good standing, who hasn't yet received their ballot in the mail do the same.

We all must DEMAND that all Union members who are eligible to vote get a ballot for the Contract vote and we must ensure that we do everything possible to DEMAND our right to vote on this Contract!

https://www.levernews.com/care-denied-the-dirty-secret-behind-medicare-advantage/?utm_source=newsletter-email&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=newsletter-article

LISTEN. This is what our Boss-loving Local 100 Union "leadership" under Richie Davis is setting us all up for.

WE MUST VOTE NO!!!

Quickly interrupting baby watch to remind you to do research on what plans your choosing for yourself or for your loved ones who are eligible for Medicare because it’s officially open enrollment. The lower monthly payments may seem enticing, but when it comes down to getting the care you deserve or not, you don’t want to be in this situation.

Our Coalition has been talking with TWU Local 100 retirees who have knowledge of how our Retiree healthcare currently breaks down in terms how many retirees are choosing Traditional Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage.

Their most recent estimates of how many retirees choose each of these plans show that the overwhelming majority of the 22,000 TWU Local 100 retirees are on Traditional Medicare:

● Around 14,000 on Traditional Medicare

● Around 3,000 pre Medicare

● Around 1,500 Aetna Medicare Advantage option 1

● Around 3,500 Aetna Medicare Advantage option 2

The MTA estimates that by forcing all Local 100 retirees onto Medicare Advantage plans they will save between $3 and $4 million a month in retiree healthcare contributions. So the "raises" and "sweeteners" in the proposed Contract are being directly paid for in part on the backs of our current and future retirees. Past Local 100 contracts guaranteed no diminution of benefits and this deal violates those promises and undermines that clause.

Richie Davis' union leadership is lying when they say that retirees are not losing anything in terms of coverage by agreeing to 2 Medicare Advantage plans instead of the 3 they currently have. In fact, around 14,000 retirees will lose their access to Traditional Medicare that they currently choose as their union retiree health insurance coverage as soon as mid-November 2023. Not to mention that new retirees will never even have the ability to chose Traditional Medicare after November 2023, if we vote Yes on this proposed Contract.

It isn’t about the individual coverage items listed on the plan chart. Insurance companies and the hedge fund parasites that invest in them make money off of Medicare Advantage by questioning care, interfering with care and denying care. Prior authorization requests are one big way they do it. The main difference between Medicare Advantage and traditional Medicare is that with Traditional Medicare YOU AND YOUR DOCTOR are in charge of your care - you make the decisions. With Medicare Advantage, you lose that control and it is now on the hands of the insurance companies’ bean-counters!

That's why anyone who EVER plans to retire should VOTE NO on this proposed contract!!!
The divide and conquer "sweeteners" and "wage increases" in this proposed Contract will never make up for what our Union leadership is giving away at the bargaining table now. And now is the time for TWU Local 100 members to stand up and fight back and put an end to our lying union leaders weakness and betrayals in the face of the MTA Bosses' historic attacks on our past gains and our most vulnerable union members.