No stops in BART talks

Johnson and Thomas Dewar, spokesman for Local 790 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents 1,450 employees, said both sides will be working around the clock and over the weekend to try to reach a contract agreement that would avert a strike.

On Wednesday, BART management offered 2 percent wage increases for the last two years of a four-year contract, an improvement over its initial proposal to freeze employee salaries for four years.

But management also asked employees to increase their health insurance payments to $150 per month over the life of the contract, an increase over the $25 per month they pay now.

Thursday night, union leaders offered to increase health insurance payments from $25 per month to $75 per month.

Union leaders, who want a three-year contract instead of the four-year pact being offered by management, asked for wage increases for each of the next three years, with a minimum of 2 percent per year and a maximum of 4 percent per year, based on the consumer price index.

Linda Bomberger, financial secretary-treasurer of Local 1555 of the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents about 830 train operators, station agents, clerks and other employees, said in a statement, "We are increasing our health care contributions as a good faith effort to move this process forward."

"We have two goals: to avoid a strike and protect safety and service at BART. We think this proposal does that," she said.

BART management is "crunching the numbers" and reviewing contract language in response to the new proposal by union leaders, Johnson said.