The transit drivers for the Lewiston-Auburn Citylink bus service have won their union election.
The drivers, who work for Western Maine Transportation Services, which manages Citylink, are now unionized with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 714, according to the Maine AFL-CIO.
The ATU 714 represents nearly 150 transit drivers, mechanics and other staff at the Biddeford Saco Old Orchard Beach Transit, Community Connector in Bangor, the Greater Portland Metro bus line, the Regional Transportation Program in Portland and Western Maine Transit. The Biddeford, Saco and Old Orchard Beach transit workers formed a union in the summer of 2021.
The Citylink transit drivers decided to unionize after a supervisor who advocated for them was fired, the AFL-CIO said.
“We decided to unionize because we didn’t feel like we had any representation at the company,” said WMTS driver Jessica Anderson, who helped organize the new union. “Our road supervisor was fantastic. She had a strong background in transportation, was well-organized and understood our jobs very well, but they fired her for sticking up for us. When they got rid of her and one of our coworkers who had always bent over backwards to fill in wherever she was needed, we all knew we had X’es on our backs and could be picked off willy nilly. When we saw that happen, we knew we needed the protection of a union. As much as management says their door is open, in reality their doors are always closed, their curtains are always shut and they did not listen to our concerns. We just felt that without a union we’re not safe here.”
Anderson said the new union will fight to raise wages, restore personal days and paid holidays, and to improve communication within the company.
“Things have been taken away and taken away and there’s only one way to stop that — get a union contract,” Anderson added. “We know we still have a battle to fight, but we’re one step closer to getting there.”