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After Los Angeles County Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (LA MTA) issued a last, best and final offer to Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), union workers offered to come back to work – if the authority allows an outside arbitrator to conduct some labor negotiations.

But the authority rejects the notion of using an outside arbitrator because the authority doesn’t want to turn negotiating responsibility worth millions in taxpayer dollars to an arbitrator not accountable to taxpayers, LA MTA officials said in a prepared statement. Using an arbitrator also will further delay a resolution, and the authority cannot add more money to the final offer, officials said.

Since Oct. 14, 2,000 ATU-represented mechanics and bus operators have been on strike.