It was a busy and exciting day in San Jose, CA, as International President John Costa and International Executive Vice President Yvette Trujillo joined Local 265- San Jose, CA, President/Business Agent Raj Singh to visit with our members on the job to thank them for their hard work and talk about their issues and concerns, including their current contract negotiations with the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA). The first stop was the VTA Guadalupe Light Rail Yard where the group paid their respects at the Guadalupe Memorial Garden, honoring our fallen 265 members who we tragically lost to workplace violence on May 26, 2021.
The group then went to talk to members about their issues, their contract, and the upcoming U.S. elections that will affect transit funding and workplace rights for all our members. The next stop was the VTA Cerone Bus Yard, where they were greeted by our members, who were lined up to welcome IP Costa and IEVP Trujillo to share their concerns. "You, our 265 members, move San Jose," said Costa. "Just a few years ago, you all went through something that nobody should ever endure. Now, the VTA must recognize your sacrifice and give you the contract you deserve." Thank you, Local 265, for everything you do for our members and your community!

"The work that is happening, the partnerships that are being built, the apprenticeship programs, and the career pathways we're creating have led to an innovative model that we're starting to spread across the country to get these programs to more of our members, "said ATU International President John Costa, a member of the CTW Advisory Board. "Becoming the fiscal agent for these impactful grants is a natural progression to our long and productive partnership with CTW. We look forward to continuing this incredible work in this new capacity."

As a transit worker, school bus employee or over-the-road bus worker, your job, wages and working conditions are directly linked to politics. Representatives in federal, state and local government make crucial decisions every day that determine the amount of funding available to your transit system or school district, the safety and security requirements at your workplace, your bargaining rights, and more. As the largest transit worker Political Action Committee (PAC) in the United States, ATU-COPE is the voice of transit workers, school bus employees and over-the-road bus workers at all levels of government. Since by law, union dues cannot be used to fund political campaigns, voluntary member contributions to ATU-COPE are used to help elect pro-labor, pro-trans-sit candidates for local, state and federal office and then hold them accountable once they are elected Federal law prohibits ATU COPE from soliciting contributions from individuals who are not ATU members, ATU and its affiliates' executive and administrative staff, and their families. Any contribution received from any other individual will not be accepted and will be returned to that individual.

"The work that is happening, the partnerships that are being built, the apprenticeship programs, and the career pathways we're creating have led to an innovative model that we're starting to spread across the country to get these programs to more of our members," said ATU International President John Costa, a member of the CTW Advisory Board. "Becoming the fiscal agent for these impactful grants is a natural progression to our long and productive partnership with CTW. We look forward to continuing this incredible work in this new capacity."