From what my father said, it isn't about pay at all, but about health benefits. What they want to do sounds an awful lot like what they did at my boyfriend's union - give the people who had been there longer excellent benefits, but newer people get less. I hope they can come to a fair compromise. Also based on what my father said, they most likely won't get docked two days pay as a part of amnesty when they start negotiations. (Although, they may still face some criminal fines…but who knows what'll happen.) My parents lived through a transit strike in NYC that happened many years ago, and it lasted 11 days. My dad drove them both to work. It'll be interesting that this one'll happen during the holidays - I wonder if it'll last that long.
It's a good thing I had already decided not to spend Christmas Eve in the city for the first time in 22 years. I would never get to either of my grandparent's houses without a subway, and I sure as hell don't have taxi cash.