After SEPTA’s largest union voted to authorize a strike on Oct. 27, Temple announced it will continue regular operations even if the union does strike, Ken Kaiser, chief operating officer, wrote in a statement to the Temple community Monday night.
Transport Workers Union Local 234 voted to authorize the strike to go into effect if they do not reach a contract by Nov. 7.
“As with past SEPTA strikes, Temple University will be open for business as usual and in-person classes and events will be held as scheduled,” Kaiser wrote in the statement. “Temple is making contingency plans to help minimize the effects of a service interruption for members of the university community.”
Temple will offer more shuttle service to stops southbound to Broad and Locust Streets, as well as northbound to Broad and Cheltenham Avenue and between its Main Campus, Health Sciences and Ambler campuses as usual, Kaiser wrote.
Temple would also reduce parking rates of $13 per day at the Temple surface lots from 7 a.m. to 10:45 p.m. Four lots, at Cecil B. Moore Avenue and 12th Street, the Tuttleman lot at Montgomery Avenue and 12th, and both the Liacouras and Montgomery garages will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Kaiser encouraged the community to discuss any challenges with people around them if a strike would compromise their work. He emphasized that employees will still “be expected to report to work on time to ensure uninterrupted service to students and patients.”
“While we all hope for a timely resolution, it is critical to plan ahead and make arrangements in the event of a strike,” Kaiser wrote. “Monitor SEPTA’s website and local media for developments.”
The union’s contract ends on Nov. 7 at 11:59 p.m. SEPTA and the union have been in negotiations ahead of the contract’s expiration. The union cites radio communication system issues and safety incidents as top priority to be addressed in the next contract, according to a union newsletter.
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