CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Nathan Cabral Jr. scrubbed a HandiVan vehicle at the Middle Street Bus Depot yesterday. Members of Teamsters and Allied Workers Local 996 returned to work yesterday to prepare for resumed city bus service today after a 34-day strike.
Buses set
to roll today
with return
of driversMechanics ensure the 525-vehicle
fleet that sat idle for 34 days
is in tip-top shape
At noon yesterday, Darryl Murai slid his timesheet in the punch clock at the Kalihi bus yard and headed straight to the tire shop.
Murai, a 19-year bus employee, said he was happy to be back replacing tires on city buses that sat idle for 34 days during the bus strike.
"The main thing is they didn't cut my benefits," said Murai. "Benefits is the most important thing."
Murai and other mechanics returned to work yesterday to change flat tires, charge dead batteries, check the oil and coolant systems and otherwise make sure all 525 city buses were ready to roll today.
On Saturday, members of Teamsters and Allied Workers Local 996 voted 948-109 to ratify a five-year contract with Oahu Transit Services Inc. that includes a 50-cent-an-hour wage increase in the fourth year and a 65-cent increase in the fifth year. Pension contributions will increase 20 cents in each of the last three years of the contract.
Buses were to start rolling to all routes between 1 and 3 a.m. today, said Marilyn Dicus, spokeswoman for Oahu Transit Services.
"We welcome our passengers back. Everybody, I know, is looking forward to coming back to work," said Dicus.
The city is offering free bus rides through Friday. On Saturday, higher fares take effect.
John Poentis, a 10-year electrician with OTS, hustled from one city bus to the next yesterday, checking the batteries on each.
"We want the public to get their buses," Poentis said.
David Aiana, foreman of the mechanic shop, said he was glad to see the mechanics return to work.
"We have a few flat tires and dead batteries," he said. "Everything will be up and running by midnight."
Dennis Kagami, a diesel mechanic, has been working on the buses for 34 years.
Kagami said he dreaded the strike, remembering the last walkout in 1971. Kagami said he did not expect the recent strike to last so long.
"I thought it was going to last two weeks at the most," he said. "After 34 years, it's good that we didn't lose anything."
Though mechanic Roman Bayan was glad to return to work, he remained unsatisfied with the five-year contract.
"We went out for nothing," said Bayan, a 23-year bus worker, noting that employees will not receive a wage increase in the first three years.
"The main thing is, I'm back to work," he said. During the third week of the strike, Bayan took a part-time job as a bus driver with Roberts Hawaii to make sure his family and bills were taken care of.
Another mechanic, Patrick Baltazar, said he was relieved the strike ended.
"It's a big weight off your shoulders," he said.
Like Bayan, Baltazar said he was worried how he was going to pay his bills and prepare for his wedding next year.
"I didn't know what to expect," said Baltazar. "It was kind of scary."
