"Bloomberg, second from right, rides to City Hall on the R train in March 2002 after New York transit workers authorized union leaders to call a strike. Bloomberg, dealing with a $1 billion budget shortfall, had refused union demands for a 24% wage increase over three years. The strike was <a href=""http://articles.cnn.com/2002-12-16/travel/nyc.transit.strike_1_transit-workers-union-president-roger-toussaint-nyc-transit-strike?_s=PM:TRAVEL"">called off</a> in December 2002 after transit workers and their management worked out a deal."
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