Of the 1,382 members of the Hawai‘i Teamsters and Allied Workers Local 996 who were eligible to vote, 1,144 gave the union the go-ahead to call a strike, while 51 voted no.

No strike date was set today and representatives from the Local 996 and O‘ahu Transit Services will meet at the bargaining table Thursday. Local 996 president Mel Kahele said if no movement is made, the union is prepared to walk out.

“We hope in our Thursday negotiation session that the company is going to take us seriously,” Kahele said. “(The vote) is giving me an indication that (the employees) aren’t going to take any take-backs and we’re going to take the company out. It’s just a question of when.”

OTS officials declined to comment tonight. But after talks broke off earlier this month, OTS spokesman Perry Confolone said the union was making “summary rejections” of company proposals and was not attempting to work out the problems.

Confolone said the bus system’s budget is $4.2 million lower than last year’s, and that OTS is facing additional costs this year, including $1.3 million in pension fund payment and a 25 percent increase in insurance costs.

OTS operates under a contract with the city to run the bus system. Local 996 represents about 1,380 drivers, mechanics, clerks and supervisors with average wages between $15 and $21 an hour.

Should a strike occur, nearly a quarter of a million bus riders would have to find other ways to get around town. Kahele acknowledged that a walkout would have a dramatic affect on the day-to-day lives of thousands of people.

“We have approximately 241,000 passengers who ride the bus each day and we’re looking at having a major impact. I’m just going to leave it at that,” he said.

Kahele said the two sides are far apart on most of the major contract issues. He characterized OTS’s latest offer was “ridiculous” because it called for freezes in wages and pension contributions, layoffs, as well as cuts in benefits.

Kahele also said job security is a major concern.

“Our members don’t want to strike, but we will do whatever it takes to achieve a fair contract,” he said.

The three-year contract expired June 30, but was extended by mutual agreement.