Monday, February 27, 2006

Toussaint not a saint

The New York Post editorializes today about the relatively high raises TWU Local 100 President Roger Toussaint received as compared with his rank and file. The Local’s rules explicitly forbid its employees from carrying over vacation time but an exception was made for Toussaint so that he could receive the increased salary. The Post reacts:

Now it comes to light that [Toussaint] flaunts the TWU's internal rules, too.

He claims he was just cashing in unused vacation time, not getting a true raise.

But that's a problem: TWU rules also say vacation time can't be carried over.

And this is the man who led Local 100 into battle.
Though we disagree with the Post’s general anti-union sentiment and failure to criticize MTA, they are absolutely correct that not only was the TWU’s President blithely breaking his union’s own rules but that this transgression is part of a larger failure of leadership. We believe that the rank and file realize this and that Toussaint’s days as the head of Local 100 very well may be numbered.