The Downtown area will likely suffer most, experts say, becausean unusually high percentage of its workers depend on publictransit. But thousands of businesses across the county could alsobe hurt because the Teamsters and other unions that belong to the800,000-member AFL-CIO have pledged to honor picket lines, whichmeans everything from the delivery of overnight packages tojanitorial service at office buildings could be disrupted.

Some 6,800 bus and rail drivers, mechanics, clerks and otherswalked off their jobs Saturday morning after talks between theirunions and the Metropolitan Transit Authority broke down. No newnegotiations are scheduled, which means the strike could drag onfor at least several days.

The typical bus driver earns more than $50,000 a year plusthousands of dollars more in overtime, the MTA says. Transitofficials are asking the union to accept a four-day workweek toreduce overtime pay and also want changes in work rules thatsometimes require highly paid mechanics to perform work that can bedone by lower-paid employees.