Two months ahead of collective bargaining talks between the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority and the newly formed Amalgamated Transit Union local 1774, union president Ed Cortez stood up in front of the RFTA board asking them not to use high profile lawyer Thomas Hock as their chief negotiator.
"Google him," Cortez told the board, in reference to Hock's reputation as a union-busting lawyer.
CEO Dan Blankenship confirmed with Aspen Public Radio that RFTA is in conversation with Hock, but says the negotiator operates under direction from the board.
Cortez and other drivers who attended the meeting say wages are the main concern of the union, citing bus drivers who have experienced homelessness because of the high housing prices in the valley. Blankenship told the board that drivers have not had a cost of living raise in more than five years.
