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Bus leaders quit in protest: 2 managers say county is unnecessarily interfering
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Dec. 9--Top Milwaukee County officials are trying to allay concerns about the potential for interruptions in bus service after a breakdown in contract talks with bus company management and the abrupt retirement of two top managers.
Kenneth Warren and Michael Vebber, who run the private firm that operates the bus system under a county contract, surprised county negotiators this week by walking away under protest over county plans to dramatically heighten scrutiny of transit spending and operations.
The current five-year contract with Milwaukee Transport Services Inc. expires Dec. 31.
If a new management agreement cannot be reached by then, the county plans to extend the current deal on a monthly basis as talks continue.
County leaders emphasized that their "first priority throughout this process is, and will continue to be, the uninterrupted operation of our buses," according to a joint statement issued by County Executive Scott Walker, County Board Chairman Lee Holloway and Supervisor James White, chairman of the County Board's Transportation Committee.
Walker said he was confident there would be no gap in service.
The management contract is separate from the labor contract with bus drivers. The drivers' contract expires at the end of March, and negotiations over a new one are expected to be difficult. The transit company has pledged to Milwaukee County that it will seek major changes in health insurance for transit operators.
Through its management talks, the county is seeking fundamental changes in its relationship with the transit company, including greater control over personnel costs and better knowledge of management decisions. The arrangement between the not-for-profit company and county dates back 30 years and is unique nationally, county officials say. The 1,200 workers at the company are not county employees.
The county owns the buses and contributes $20 million in county tax levy to the $157 million operation. State and federal funds provide roughly half the budget; fares account for the rest.
The county is liable for retirement health care costs of the private company -- a significant issue, given that transit company workers still have lifetime health insurance with no monthly premiums.
Deep cut proposed
Walker fired the first public shot in September, proposing in his budget a 38% cut in the total compensation paid to Warren as managing director of the transit system and Vebber as deputy. Their combined annual package, including salary and deferred compensation, is $342,958 this year, Walker's budget shows.
The County Board changed that to a 10% cut. Walker said he was trying to align the company's top salaries with those of county department heads, and felt it was fair during a period when fare increases and route cuts have become routine.
Warren and Vebber contend the county is interfering with their ability to manage a transit system that has won national accolades as one of the most efficient and well-managed in the country, according to a letter they sent to County Board supervisors.
"They felt their ability to lead was taken away" by the county's new interest in overseeing aspects of the transit system's management, said transit company spokesman Joe Caruso, who added that the two men would not speak to a reporter about the situation.
Warren's retirement took effect immediately. Vebber is staying on until year's end.
"In our opinion, these changes would essentially preclude Milwaukee Transport Services from operating as an independent, privately managed contractor," their letter said. Rather, it would operate more like a division of the county Department of Transportation and Public Works, they said.
They said they had shown a willingness to bend to many of the county's new demands. The men said the company had proposed a county residency requirement for new hires, new limits on pay increases, changes in health insurance costs and greater information sharing with county Director of Public Works George Torres.
Torres said Friday the county wanted more transparency in how the company uses public funds. The county is not interested in taking over the bus system, Torres and Walker stressed.
Caruso said the company fully intends to keep negotiating over terms of a new contract and hopes for a quick resolution.
"Nobody wants the public to suffer," Caruso said.
Vebber is acting head of the company, until Dec. 31. Anita Connelly, the company's director of administration, is acting deputy.
Torres said if the two sides cannot reach a deal within four or five months, the county will re-open a bidding process. Earlier this year, Milwaukee Transport was the lone bidder on the management contract.
Bus drivers, meanwhile, are anxiously watching the contract drama unfold.
The sudden departure of their top two managers has left bus operators concerned about the immediate future, according to Brandon Jensen, financial secretary of the bus drivers' union.
"We're getting a lot of calls from our members," Jensen said. "They are concerned. Is the system shutting down? Who are we working for? I've been telling them that when January 1 comes around, show up for work as usual."
Copyright (c) 2006, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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