Bus Operator's Discontent
To the Editor:

It's contract time again. We've all heard the groaning from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority about its budget woes. We've also heard our union president say that this contract will be a tough fight given the financial status of the Authority.

Our last contract was, to be sure, a bust. We followed our feckless leader into a strike that gained nothing for us but the ire of the riding public. At a time when the Authority was boasting of a surplus, we got a contract which many would argue was the worst ever. Now, with the MTA crying poverty, does anyone think Roger and his cronies will get a good contract? Or even a decent one?

During every contract negotiation, we hear that raises should be based on better productivity. I submit that in the last 10 years, the vast majority of productivity increases were produced by Bus Operators. The Straphangers' Campaign recently published a report stating that increases in ridership on our buses are far and away greater than increases in service. Simply put, Bus Operators are carrying a greater and greater volume of customers with the same or only slight increases in scheduled service. In and of itself, that is the very definition of greater productivity.

The Brooklyn Division Chair speaks of nonsense like increased reporting times. It's time for him and all of us to look at the facts. We don't need another five minutes' pay for pre-trip inspection of our buses. What we do need, at the very least, is pay parity with Train Operators. What's more, Bus Operators must get a 20/50 pension.

Bus Operators perform many of the same duties as several other titles in the system. Examples of this can be seen every day on our buses.

A good operator, seeing an empty Snapple bottle rolling around on his bus will take the time to pick it up and dispose of it. For the safety of his customers, such an operator is doing what Cleaners do. Station Agents answer questions and collect revenue. Do we not do the same? A Conductor's main duty is to open doors and make announcements. We do the very same thing. Train Operators drive their trains. We drive our buses. But we are not in a controlled environment. We are on the chaotic streets of the city. Train Operators don't have to deal with pedestrians, bike riders, taxicabs, skateboarders, potholes, traffic jams et al. They don't have to board wheelchair-bound customers. In fact, they have little if any direct contact with the customers.

It is also important to note that not one of these other titles in the system jeopardizes his livelihood every time he gets into his own car. Sure. With a few moving violations, a Conductor would have to take mass transit to work. Bus Operators would be out of work altogether!

The bottom line is, we do many of the same duties they do and more. All rolled into one title: Bus Operator. We are more productive at it than ever before. What has been our reward for our efforts? A horrible contract representing the worst leadership in the history of the TWU. A union president who is more concerned with the needs of a minority of the workers (i.e. reductions in discipline, T.U.F., child care, and the "unborn") rather than the vast majority of the dues-paying membership. This must change!

Few would dispute that Bus Operators have the single toughest, most stressful job in the system. The toll our jobs takes on our physical and mental health is apparent. And few jobs in any field have as much stress as we do. Statistics bear this out as well, when you consider the average life expectancy of a retired Bus Operator is two years. Two Years! No one should have to drive a bus for 25 years before seeing a fair retirement. No one!

The State Legislature has passed a 20/50 bill. Neither this Governor nor any of his predecessors have signed it. Why? Possibly because it is a bill for all transit workers. And quite frankly, not all titles in the system are worthy of such a pension. Not trying to belittle the important work done by these other titles, but the stress levels of their duties pale in comparison to that of the Bus Operator.

Additionally, technology exists that can in fact replace many of those jobs. Trains can be computerized and run themselves without a motorman. MetroCard vending machines have already replaced many clerks. And there is OPTO. But for every bus the MTA puts in the streets, it must have an operator. The difficulty and importance of our work cannot be overstated.

So how do we make this a reality? There is only one way. Bus Operators need a local of their own. We are the ones doing the jobs of several other titles. We are the ones who have provided the greatest productivity increases. We are the ones dealing with the tremendous stress of navigating our behemoths on our-of-control city streets. We are the ones who put our jobs on the line every time we get in to our own cars. It is time that we are the ones to receive our just rewards. It is time to make a break from the TWU.

RICHARD GRUBERT, Bus Operator, Ulmer Park