BUS DRIVERS' STRIKE OVER THREE-YEAR CONTRACT RESTORES NORMAL SCHEDULES.

Byline: Kathleen Sweeney Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - Santa Clarita Transit bus drivers are returning to work today after signing a new three-year contract Friday, ending a nine-day strike that left thousands of riders stranded.

The majority of the 105 drivers approved the contract that will give them a $2.20 hourly raise during the term of the contract, reduce their health care costs by 10 percent, give drivers three paid holidays, and guarantee drivers at least 36 hours of work a week.

``The package isn't that terrible and it isn't that good,'' said Miguel Lopez, head union negotiator for Teamsters Local 572. ``They did a good job picketing. We got it completed, we got it done.''

The contract will increase top pay this year from $12.09 an hour to about $12.94. It also pays employees for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day if they don't work; decreases their contribution to health insurance from 52 percent to 42 percent; gives them more personal time off and increases the amount of time they can accumulate in a time-off bank; increases the uniform allowance from $120 to $140 a year; and ensures each driver will be paid for at least 36 hours a week.

However, one of the main issues that kept union members and the transit company at arms' length was overtime costs. Drivers wanted to earn overtime after an eight-hour workday instead of a 40-hour workweek, but Lopez said that issue wasn't discussed and will be raised during the next contract negotiations.

Ken Graska, general manager of ATC/Vancom, which contracts its services with the city, said the new contract is fair and reasonable.

``I'm saddened by the fact that they did have to strike to try to make changes and improvements to their contract, and I feel badly for the customers who were disrupted,'' he said. ``They got a pay increase and decrease in their insurance payments. They definitely came out ahead.''

Lopez said the drivers considered how it was affecting the public and felt the contract was good enough.

``The message from the drivers is they wanted everyone to know they considered the bigger picture in that they believe the passengers want them back to work, and the service they provide not to be held off any longer,'' Lopez said.

A tentative deal was reached Thursday afternoon after a several-hour negotiating session with a federal mediator - the first meeting between the two sides since drivers walked off the job Sept. 19.

ATC/Vancom and union officials agreed to sit down after the drivers packed the City Council meeting Tuesday, asking members to help resolve the dispute. City officials encouraged them to work out their differences.

The strike stunned the city, leaving 12,000 riders stranded. ATC/Vancom employees from other company sites left their families and temporarily moved to Santa Clarita to help get kids to school and commuters to work, yet only 70 percent of the bus routes were running.

Cindy Williams sat on the picnic bench at the bus stop Wednesday morning, an hour late for work and no ride in sight.

She had already called her bosses several times at Six Flags California, saying she would be late. The first bus she needed to catch from home was running 20 minutes behind schedule. When she arrived at her connection stop on Citrus Road near Town Center mall, she learned the next bus wasn't scheduled to stop until 2 p.m. - four hours away.

``I think jobs might slightly be at risk,'' Williams, an arcade supervisor, said of the inconvenience of the bus schedules affected by striking drivers. ``If you're supposed to open an arcade, they need you there.''

Phil, an assistant general manager of operations at ATC/Vancom's Phoenix facility who asked that only his first name be used, has been involved with three strikes. He's seen the impacts on both sides and volunteered to drive routes for a week, hoping the union and company would reach an agreement.

``People have enough to be anxious about,'' he said. ``It would have been nice if they would have waited and continued to work with management.''

Ron Kilcoyne, city transportation manager, said normal bus service will be running today, and to keep current customers, to attract more riders and to make up for the inconvenience, no fares will be charged for all local, commuter and Dial-a-Ride service through Friday. The city will also honor September passes through October.

Passengers rode free during the strike; fares normally net the city about $7,500 a day, Kilcoyne said. However, the city wasn't paying for services that weren't operating.

``We're excited to get back into service and get our service back operating,'' Kilcoyne said. ``We would be in full operation (today) and we apologize for the inconvenience it's caused our customers and we thank them for their patience.''

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(1 -- 2 -- ran in SAC edition only) Phil, a replacement driver from Phoenix who declined to give his last name, fills out paperwork before beginning his route, above. Santa Clarita Transit used replacement drivers to cover some routes, left, during the drivers' strike, which ended Thursday.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer