Chatham Area Transit warns union of illegal strike law ahead of possible work stoppage; Union denies rumors

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Chatham Area Transit has issued a formal written notice to the leadership and members of ATU Local 1324 warning that a planned work stoppage would violate Georgia law.

The notice cited O.C.G.A. § 45-19-2, which prohibits public employees in Georgia from promoting, encouraging, or participating in a strike. CAT said union members are allegedly preparing to engage in an illegal strike on or shortly after March 2, 2026.

You can read the full notice for yourself below:

The action follows a “sick out” staged by paratransit drivers on November 11, 2025. CAT said its board is taking precautionary measures to ensure that thousands of daily riders are not left without service.

The agency said the people who would suffer are vulnerable residents who depend on the bus to get to work, medical appointments, and groceries.

The notice states:

• Public employees are permitted to express opinions or complaints about working conditions,
• Grievances cannot interfere with job duties
• under Georgia law public employees are prohibited from promoting, encouraging, or participating in a strike 

CAT claims that union members are preparing to engage in an illegal strike on or after March 2nd, which was yesterday.

“Many of our riders do not have other means of transportation, which means folks from across the county rely on CAT buses to get to work, school, the doctor’s office, and it is our first and only job to make sure they get to where they need to go, every time, on time,” said Detric Leggett, CAT Board of Directors Chairman.

Leggett said some of the most vulnerable people in the community rely on CAT operations through fixed-route buses or paratransit service.

CAT says service will continue uninterrupted

“We want the public to know that CAT’s leadership will do everything it can to ensure that reliable and uninterrupted transit service will continue as usual,” said Spencer DeMink, CAT Board Spokesperson. “We value our partnership with the union and are confident that any concerns can be addressed through established negotiation channels.”

CAT said it respects the dedication and hard work of its drivers and mechanics and remains committed to ongoing dialogue with union leadership.

“We hadn’t heard anything prior,” Demink said. “You know, if they had come with a list of demands, and said, we need this, this, this, and CAT said no. Yeah, you might want to strike. But because it came out of the blue. That’s what’s kind of peculiar.”

Bus riders are encouraged to check catchacat.org or contact info@catchacat.org for the latest information on routes and schedules.

ATU local 1324 responds

This email is a written response to ensure the ATU Local1324 Union President and Executives are in receipt of your recent correspondence via letter and email alleging “Rumors” of an unauthorized strike. Your letter appears to rely on unspecified rumors.

The Union states Unequivocally the Union has not authorized, encouraged, promoted, or endorsed any strike action. Any suggestion to the contrary is based on rumor and speculation, Not Fact.

The Union is deeply concerned that Executive Leadership chose to issue a formal legal threat grounded in speculation and unverified rumors rather than first engaging directly with the Union laborers elected officers of Chatham Area Transit workforce to verify and validate any information needed. Escalating a rumor into legal posturing does not strengthen public trust, nor does it improve bus transportation for the citizens who depend on Chatham Area Transit daily.

The Union members remain committed public servants who report to work daily under difficult, challenging and often strained operational conditions to keep CAT operating. They continue to transport hundreds of thousands of Chatham County residents including seniors, workers, students, and vulnerable populations - despite staffing shortages, equipment failures or the lack of, safety issues, and service reliability issues that are well known to both management and the riding public.

When buses fail to appear due to lack of staffing; passengers understandably assume the operator is late or at fault. In reality, many trips go unassigned, and also faulty, high priced non-functional technology. 

This operational breakdown places frontline operators in daily direct conflicts with frustrated passengers which creates unnecessary safety risks. These are the realities faced by laborers and riders daily while many of you are safe in the comfort of your office with no vision or plan to correct these failures. Management continues to reduce and cut service, save money, instead of correcting the issues. If there is frustration on frontline employees, it is not rooted in unlawful intent. It stems from long standing operational, workplace and safety concerns that have yet to receive meaningful attention and corrective action from Executive Leadership and the Chairman. 

The public deserves clarity: There is no verified strike action that exists.  

What does exist are: Ongoing service reliability issues, operator shortages, workplace safety concerns, disparate treatment, and operational decisions made by Management that directly affect riders and employees. Instead of focusing on speculative strike narratives, leadership attention; would be better directed toward: Improving service reliability, Addressing operational deficiencies instead of promoting demonstrated failures, Investing in frontline workforce retention and recruitment, Ensuring transparency and accountability in Executive decision making.

The Union is also concerned about the expenditure of hard earned public funds used to issue legal correspondence in response to a rumor. Taxpayer and fare revenue dollars should be directed toward stabilizing operations, restoring service quality, and supporting frontline workforce. NOT towards intimidation tactics by sending legal warnings in response to an unsubstantiated rumor.

Let this Union be Equally Clear: Lawful Advocacy is Not unlawful conduct. The Union will continue to represent its members vigorously and within the bounds of the law. We WILL NOT be intimidated by attempts to shift focus away from documented operational failures.

For the record, the responsibility for managing this organization rests with leadership that includes: staffing levels, service reduction, and system performance. Blame for operational shortcomings cannot and should not be redirected toward the workforce. The Union is not responsible for management failed or delayed reasons to retain, hire, and promote a healthy and non-disparate treatment work environment.

Chairman Detric Leggett the Union respectfully urges you to redirect your focus toward the policies that can improve the daily operational challenges affecting your constituents- the riders of this system- and the workforce responsible for delivering the service. This is what a policy making Board and Chairman are responsible for. Due to the fact you are implanting yourself into Day to Day Operations, the service is drastically failing under your leadership. Public confidence at this transit authority will not be restored through threats. It will be restored through accountability, operational competence or acknowledging the lack thereof, transparency, and meaningful engagement with the workforce. If you are involved in day to day, then the entire B.O.D. should be involved also.

To serve as a reminder to you, our members are REAL public servants. They deserve leadership that addresses REAL operational issues with the same urgency it addresses rumors.

Public Transit service improves through COLLABORATION NOT INTIMIDATION. This Union is not and will not be intimidated!

The Union further requested the following assurances in writing within 24 hours:

Confirmation that the Authority will not interfere with or attempt to undermine the Union’s collective bargaining rights.

Assurance that no retaliation will or continue to occur against Union officers or members for lawful activity.

Confirmation that employees earned sick leave, FMLA, and other unforeseen matters through the contractual agreement will not be penalized for use thereof, commitment to maintaining a safe and non-hostile work environment, provide for livable wages and restoring reliable service for our riders.

Accordingly, and to the extent applicable under the Freedom of Information Act and/or the Union’s rights to relevant information necessary for collective bargaining and contract administration,

The Union requests the following:

1. The Identity of the individual(s) or entity(ies) who informed the Company Or its representative that the Union was planning a strike;

2. All documents, communications, emails, memorandum notes, or reports that rely upon the Company making these allegations;

3. The date(s) on which the Company first received the alleged information;

4. Any internal Company communication discussing the alleged strike rumor.

This information is directly relevant to the Union’s representational responsibilities and to correcting the record regarding the Company’s assertion. For the avoidance of doubt, while the Union has 

not authorized a strike at this time, the Union expressly reserves the right to engage in lawful, statutory protected concerted activities as permitted by law. Please ensure all requested information is provided in 24 hours of receiving this letter. Nothing in this correspondence should be construed as a waiver of any rights, chains, or defense of the Union, all of which are expressly reserved.

Housekeeping for Management

Make sure before sending a legal document publicly with wrong names and titles, ensure yourself with knowledge of your employees;

1. Joe Baker is not employed with Chatham Area Transit any longer and has not been employed for a year

2. Christopher Godfrey is not the Paratransit Steward

3. Renee Erwin is not the Maintenance Steward

Management should ensure accuracy before referencing former employees on a formal pre suit letter.

President Donya Swinton and the ATU Executives