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Meeting Notice


The next monthly meeting will be held on Tuesday,
June 15th at 7:30pm

Carpenters Local 281
Training Center
23 Market St.
Binghamton, NY

Topic:
General business meeting




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RATIFICATION MEETING NOTICE

ATU 1145 and Broome County has a tentative agreement with our collective bargaining unit.

There will be a ratification meeting on Sunday, June 13th at 7:00pm at:

Carpenters Local 281 Training Center
24 Market Street
Binghamton, NY 

We will be voting on the tentative agreement on Tuesday, June 15th
from 5:00am until 11:00am and 12:30pm to 4:00pm

ALL MEMBERS ARE URGED TO ATTENT THE MEETING
AND TO VOTE ON THE TENTATIVE AGREEMENT

Any questions or concerns, please contact a union officer.

 
                                                                                                            Pete Schiraldi
                                                                                                            President/Business Agent
                                                                                                             ATU1145




Visit the News page to see what the Press published about BC Transit cuts





*** NOTICE ***

Monthly Union Meeting Change Notice


 In accordance with our local by-laws, the union meetings for the months of
  June, July and August will be held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month.
 Those meetings will begin at 7:30pm and will be held at the same location.






COPE logo


As the largest transit worker political action committee (PAC) in the United States, the Amalgamated Transit Union Committee on Political Education (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 contributions from ATU members* to ATU-COPE are used to help elect pro-labor, pro-transit candidates for local, state and federal office. Once the election is over, ATU-COPE works closely with the officials we helped elect to make sure that our members’ interests are well-represented.


Right now ATU-COPE is working to:

  • Provide record increases in federal transit funding and expand the availability of federal and state operating assistance for transit systems.
  • Fight efforts to make it easier to privatize transit and school bus workers’ jobs and weaken their collective bargaining rights.
  • Enhance security measures in America’s transit, school bus and over-the-road bus systems.
  • Preserve and expand worker health and safety laws that protect transit, school bus and over-the-road bus employees on the job.
  • Defeat state and local initiatives that seek to limit the amount of funding available for school bus transportation.
  • Promote initiatives requiring transit labor representatives on state and local transportation boards and commissions.

Recent ATU-COPE Accomplishments

  • Preserved transit worker collective bargaining and job rights in the recently-passed federal highway and transit legislation.
  • Secured federal funding for maintenance training program for transit workers.
  • Supported successful ballot initiatives to increase transit funding in Seattle, California, Minnesota and numerous other cities and states across the U.S.
  • Defeated so-called "Taxpayer Bill of Rights" (or TABOR) initiatives that would have limited funding for crucial public services, including transit and school transportation, in multiple states.
ATU local 1145 is urging all members, both active and retired, to join the COPE Club.
Current contributors may wish to upgrade their ATU COPE Club level.
For an application, see Brian Cappellett or Ron Dufford



Retirees Night Out


Broome County Transit retirees meet for lunch at:

Niko's Restaurant
Upper Court Street
Binghamton, NY

1st Thursday of every month at 11:00am

All Transit retirees are welcome to join




We would like to congratulate and wish good luck
to the members who retired in the year 2009



                                            Rodney Councilman                            Coach Operator

                                            Gary Edwards                                     Sr. Transit Mechanic

                                             James Pitcher                                     Coach Operator

                                             Ed Ross                                             Coach Operator

                                             George Vanderpool                           Coach Operator

                                             Fran Vasconi                                     Coach Operator

                                             Rich Webb                                        Coach Operator

                                             Linda Zimmer                                    Coach Operator





NEW LONGEVITY PAYROLL INFORMATION

All supplemental wages are taxed at 25% in the new Payroll system.  The definition of supplemental wages according to the IRS is as follows:

 

Supplemental wages are compensation paid in addition to an employee's regular wages. They include, but are not limited to, bonuses, commissions, overtime pay, payments for accumulated sick leave, severance pay, awards, prizes, back pay, retroactive pay increases, and payments for nondeductible moving expenses. Other payments subject to the supplemental wage rules include taxable fringe benefits and expense allowances paid under a nonaccountable plan. How you withhold on supplemental wages depends on whether the supplemental payment is identified as a separate payment from regular wages.

 

By this definition longevity and the sick pay incentive are considered supplemental wages.  The attendance incentive quarterly payment can be handled in two ways:

 

Supplemental wages combined with regular wages.   If you pay supplemental wages with regular wages but do not specify the amount of each, withhold federal income tax as if the total were a single payment for a regular payroll period.

 

Supplemental wages identified separately from regular wages.   If you pay supplemental wages separately (or combine them in a single payment and specify the amount of each), the federal income tax withholding method depends partly on whether you withhold income tax from your employee's regular wages.




TO ATU MEMBERS:

SUBJECT: LUMP SUM SUPPLEMENTAL WAGE PAYMENTS

DATE:   April 19, 2009

 

As you may be aware, there have been inquiries to the Finance/ Payroll Department from ATU members about a recent change in tax withholding procedures of lump sum supplemental wage payments for such benefits as tool allowances, attendance incentives, longevity pay, etc. 

According to IRS regulations these wages are considered to be supplemental as they are paid in addition to an employee’s regular wages.  To comply with IRS regulations the PeopleSoft payroll system taxes supplemental wages identified separately from regular wages at a rate of 25% federal tax withholding.  There are no exceptions or other % allowed.

Supplemental wage payments included in employees’ normal regular wages and specified amounts separately, are subject to federal tax withholding at 25% as well.  These wages would be identified as supplemental even if paid in a single check.

Based on the above, the Finance/ Payroll Department, is highly recommending that any lump sum supplemental wage payments be included in employee’s normal regular wages effective immediately, rather than be payable in separate checks.  To cut manual checks in the new system requires a separate payroll to be run and is a very tedious process.

ATU is agreeable to including supplemental wage payments in employee’s normal regular paychecks and not on a separate check.

 

Signed:

_______________________   _________

Peter Schiraldi                           Date

ATU Pres.

______________________    __________

Thomas H. Behan                      Date

Director of Employee Relations









































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