Some 1,500 drivers, mechanics, and cleaners for three bus companies in Queens, New York, walked off the job June 17 to demand a better health benefits package. This is the third strike by the bus workers this year. Union officials said this time the walkout will continue until the city government, for which the three companies work under contract, agrees to their demands. "This is the beginning of a prolonged struggle, and that is what we should be prepared for," said Roger Toussaint, president of Transport Workers Union Local 100, which organizes the bus workers. The city government has sought to minimize the effects of the strike by hiring livery cab drivers and vans to cover the 42 bus routes affected by the work stoppage.  
 
 
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