Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 9, 1990 TAG: 9004090310
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A/2 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville, Fla., Greyhound claimed unlawful actions by Amalgamated Transit Union and 20 union officers have cost it at least $10 million. The suit seeks actual damages plus court and attorney fees and punitive damages under Florida law.
The Greyhound suit says violent acts pass "far beyond the bounds of legitimate conduct sanctioned by the law and represent clear efforts to disrupt interstate travel by criminal means."
Greyhound officials said several specific offenses showed a pattern of racketeering activity, including extortion, attempted murder, obstruction of justice, interference with interstate commerce and arson.
Union officials had no immediate comment on the suit, but in the past they have said Greyhound executives were using the violence issue as an excuse for not returning to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair contract.
Talks between the company and the union have been stalled since March 18, and the company said it won't return to the bargaining table until a week goes by without any acts of violence. There have been about 30 shootings and more than 100 bomb threats, the company said.
The union contends there have been more than 60 incidents of violence against striking drivers. One striker was crushed to death by a bus in Redding, Calif., on March 3.
About 6,300 Greyhound drivers and 3,000 maintenance and other workers walked out March 2 over wages and job security. Greyhound, the nation's only nationwide bus system, has been operating on a reduced schedule with replacement drivers they hired and union members who crossed the picket line.
On Sunday night, an Arrow Trailways bus was struck by two bullets as it drove on a highway near downtown Fort Worth, Texas.
One bullet struck the passenger door near the front of the bus and another hit just behind the door. Eleven passengers were aboard.
Arrow Trailways is not affiliated with Greyhound. Based in Killeen, Texas, Arrow Trailways belongs to an association of bus companies that uses the name of the former Trailways bus line, which was taken over by Greyhound a few years ago. Arrow Trailways' drivers are not on strike.
Elsewhere, a Greyhound replacement driver was charged Sunday with carrying a dangerous weapon after he brandished a rifle during a confrontation with striking bus workers in Washington, D.C.
by CNB