Bus Drivers At Sky Harbor Airport On Strike

By Kendra Szabo
Published: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 - 10:37am
Updated: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 - 10:46am
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Kendra Szabo - KJZZ
Bus drivers at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport were on strike Wednesday in protest of the contract proposed by Veolia Transportation.

Sky Harbor Airport travelers could be facing some problems Wednesday. The estimated 180 shuttle drivers who transport people from the rental car center to the terminals, and between terminals are on strike.

Tuesday night’s walkout came after the union rejected what Veolia Transportation called it’s ‘last and best’ contract offer. The bus driver’s union says higher medical insurance rates and working conditions are the central issues. Bus drivers and striker Debby Jones says they will do what it takes to get that.

“We are out here 24 hours a day until this is resolved one way or another,” Jones said.

A top company official at Veolia says they have made a fair offer to the workers, and that they have a contingency plan in place to continue service. Sky Harbor spokesperson Deborah Ostreicher says airport service should not be too different from usual.

“There may be a couple of minutes extra waiting time for the next bus, and your route might take a little bit of a different turn than usual to make sure that make sure everybody gets service, but all-in-all there’s very little change at the airport,” Ostreicher said.

If you park in the East Economy lot, you can avoid any delays by taking Sky Train to Terminal 4.