ATU International President Lawrence “Larry” Hanley wrote a scathing letter to TWU International President Harry Lombardo in response to Lombardo’s letter about ATU rep Ed Watt appearing on the Progressive Action show, where Lombardo seemed to be defending John Samuelsen.
Mr. Hanley’s letter seemed to expose Samuelsen’s role as a leader within TWU, especially on how he handled Vision Zero. Mr. Hanley was quoted in the letter as saying, “He asked me to contact the Mayor, an old friend of mine, and try to persuade him to change the law, which had already been enacted”.
Vision Zero was enacted in January 2014, Samuelsen reached out to Mr. Hanley in 2015 to get help with Vision Zero, Which was a whole year after the law was enacted and bus drivers started getting arrested.
Samuelsen seems to desperately run to people for help when he’s in trouble. Instead of being proactive and getting in front of issues, he seems to only respond after the damage is done. He also did this same thing with Tier 6. He ran to Gov. Cuomo for our last contract, he ran to Lombardo to deal with Ed Watt and just revealed, he ran to Mr. Hanley to deal with Vision Zero, wow!
Samuelsen dropped the ball with Vision Zero only deciding to take action 1 year AFTER the law was enacted, not before. Where were all of Samuelsen’s political allies whom he freely shower with COPE money in hopes of personal favors to help him with this law?
Instead he ran to ATU President Hanley for a favor only to show him up and crash one of the meetings with “about 75 people in TWU shirts”. Mr. Hanley said the meeting was supposed to help TWU members with Vision Zero, but Samuelsen decided it was wiser to have his goons come and disrupt the meeting. As a result, this put bus operators in further harm, at this same time Samuelsen’s anti Mayor Deblasio narrative was birth.
In this letter Samuelsen has been accused of selling out his TWU members, to become members in Queens. He also preferred that the school bus division have no union at all than be apart of the ATU.
Samuelsen’s penchant for selling out the very same members he represents in TWU Local 100 has also been a problem. He sold out the unborn with Tier 6, women and minorities with the “suspension” of the apprenticeship program, 5 years top pay, the closing of swing rooms, 8% over 5 years our last contract, frivolously spending of COPE money and many other things.
Samuelsen’s anti-union tactics have been on display from early in his career when he was secretly putting up fliers telling people not to strike way before the E –Board voted to do so in 2005.
This is the same Samuelsen who allegedly told then Chief of Staff Harry Wills “the people I hung out with chased blacks out of the neighborhood, I ran home”. This is Gessisten Beach, a neighborhood which has a history of hate against minorities.
This is the same Samuelsen who doesn’t show up to Black History Month celebrations at the union hall. This is the same Samuelsen whom has shown a lack of compassion for the very same members he represents.
This is the same Samuelsen who has made an excess of $1.4 million while being in office.
This is the same Samuelsen who doesn’t care about the minimal raises TWU members receive to management.
Samuelsen has repeatedly showed us his true colors time and time again. He also has given the members of TWU local 100 his ass to kiss time and time again.
My mother always told me; when someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.
It about time we believe who he really is and take a stand, some of his staff has already started to, that’s how we received this letter.
CHECK OUT OUR LATEST SHOW WITH LATISHA DIPAOLA
Instagram: ProgressiveAction
Twitter: ProgressiveAct
PROGRESSIVE ACTION MAGAZINE 