March 2 Greyhound Bus Strike Begins

On this day in labor history, the year was 1990.

That was the day 9,300 workers walked out at Greyhound Bus Lines.

The 1980s devastated Greyhound workers.

First, the industry had been rocked by President Carter’s deregulation of the transportation industry.

Then, a bitter 1983 strike ended in defeat for workers. Concessionary contracts, deep wage cuts and a two-tier system were firmly established by the time contract negotiations started in early 1990.

The Amalgamated Transit Union negotiated terms closer to what was lost over the past decade, but new owners at Greyhound wouldn’t have it.

They claimed $300 million in debt.

The ATU insisted the company had been turning handsome profits.

Pickets went up at depots and garages around the country, while hundreds of scab drivers were hired.

With a week’s worth of training, they were soon operating 10-ton buses unsafely.

Riders complained of replacement drivers falling asleep at the wheel.

The strike soon turned violent and deadly.

There were reports of sniper fire and bomb threats.

Many charged these were fake stories, meant to spike public support for the strike.

Early on, 59-year old Robert Waterhouse was run down by a scab driver while on the picket line in Redding, California.

Waterhouse had 30 years as a driver with the company and had planed his retirement for that summer, when he was killed.

ATU reported many more picket line injuries.

Within a month, the company was operating with 2400 replacement drivers.

The company filed for bankruptcy in June.

After three years, they would finally agree to $22 million in back pay, reinstate hundreds of drivers and raise wages.

But the number of drivers was cut in half. It would take the ATU years to rebuild its strength.