Abuse to TTC Employees

[taal]

Check this article out (Pulse 24):

http://www.pulse24.com/News/Top_Stor...4-009/page.asp

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Imagine going to work everyday knowing there’s a good chance you may be spat on, threatened or assaulted.

That’s what the majority of T.T.C. operators face on a daily basis and after enduring years of humiliation and abuse from disgruntled riders who refuse to pay up, the transit workers are taking matters into their own hands.

Effective immediately, drivers will not be disputing any fares.

“We will not put our safety and our incomes at risk for $2.75,” Bob Kinnear, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, said Wednesday.

“The policy of the T.T.C. is that operators can use their discretion in deciding whether or not to try to enforce the proper payment of fares. That is what we will now be doing. We will be using our discretion.”

Kinnear had some very harsh words for T.T.C. General Manager Rick Durcharme, claiming he’s ignoring the issue and that he refused to address the problem at a recent closed-door session.

“The simple fact of the matter is that Mr. Ducharme and the commissioners have been so incompetent when it comes to getting proper funding for the T.T.C. that fares go up and up and up, pitting the passengers against the operators,” the union boss said.

According to T.T.C. statistics, 70 percent of operators have been assaulted at some point in their careers and 40 percent have been attacked in the last five years.

The number of attacks is on the rise and the assailants are rarely caught.

To highlight his point, Kinnear outlined the humiliating and shocking stories of three drivers who’d repeatedly had their lives threatened, who’d been spat on, even choked, and who all lost money, and in some cases their family lives, because of physical assaults.

Kinnear said Wednesday’s union announcement was provoked by the following comment made by Ducharme on CityNews in February:

“It's a balancing act because I get customers saying the same thing. ‘Wait a minute now. All you do is give me excuses for your operators. You don't follow up. You really haven't provided discipline.’ So you have to look at both stories.”

Kinnear says he recently asked Ducharme if he knew of any operator who attacked a customer without provocation and got no answer.”
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What do you guys think about this, although I knew ttc employees face some abuse from passengers (Not unlike many service oriented jobs) I didn’t know the situation was so harsh (At least in there minds), and now they will no longer dispute any Fare related problems …

Personally, I have hardly ever witnessed anything remotely similar to what is described in the article (I ride the TTC everyday, albeit usually the 36 Finch West + Subway). There was one situation where the bus was full and the driver, stopped at a light, would not let any more passengers on (Rightfully so). Three teenagers waiting to get on kicked the door several times in an attempt to … I’m not quite sure …

[LordMandeep]

unions are useless.

Because of them half of the people at my mom's work got let go.

[Tallinn to Toronto]

although the story had mentioned a few ttc employees that had been physically attacked (which is way uncool), i'm sure the "70%" they are referring to is from verbal attacks. i can assume we've all flipped off a ttc employee at some point, so i'm sure we're all to blame for that. however, i'd be curious to see a statistical comparison between "attacks on TTC employees" and "complaints towards the TTC" from passengers. numerous times i have been treated with such a suspect amount of respect and degredation from the "man" behind the glass booth. like a lot of civil servants, ttc employees likely get the amount of respect that they give. and i know that there are lots of great people that work for the city, but lets face it, employees take out their frustration on numerous other riders, besides the real "bad" guys. i think a person sitting in a booth giving riders tickets is such a waste of money. most other metropolitan transit systems in the world rely on automated machines for passes and tokens. maybe the people in the booths become disgruntled because they take people's money for 9 hours straight, thinking about how meaningless their job is. these jobs should be offered to part time workers that don't belong to a union.

[Tallinn to Toronto]

and come on "no longer disputing fare"? yeah fucking right. they take great pleasure in doing that.

[Taller, Better]

A workmate was on a bus coming to work one day, and the bus driver was doing that thing where they have to wait at a stop to catch up to their schedule, or they get penalized for showing up too soon at the station. A man was in a hurry and asked him
why they were waiting, and instead of just telling the guy the reason he was a bit smart with the rider. The rider got totally pissed and smacked him in the face on the way out. *Pow*.

[Tallinn to Toronto]

Originally Posted by Taller, Better

A workmate was on a bus coming to work one day, and the bus driver was doing that thing where they have to wait at a stop to catch up to their schedule, or they get penalized for showing up too soon at the station. A man was in a hurry and asked him
why they were waiting, and instead of just telling the guy the reason he was a bit smart with the rider. The rider got totally pissed and smacked him in the face on the way out. *Pow*.

ouch, that's a little harsh. but MAN do i hate those bus drivers. so this is bascially a work to rule, like when the teachers do their strikes? god forbid they actually do what they're paid to do . . . argh!

[Tallinn to Toronto]

sorry about the multiple posts here, but if you're gonna make an announcement like this, does that mean we can act on it? like, can i just throw in 5 cents or something and it won't be disputed? seriously?

[Doc Halladay]

They wouldn't have to dispute the fares if people weren't such cheapasses and paid up. I could really care less how rich or poor one is.... pay the fare like everyone else.

I'm sure the whole disputed fare thing isn't the only reason why these drivers are being 'assaulted' though. Some of them are just downright dickheads and bring it on themselves.

[nitzomoe]

Originally Posted by Tallinn to Toronto

and come on "no longer disputing fare"? yeah fucking right. they take great pleasure in doing that.

even though its a pain waiting for the guy/girl to give in i standby the driver, its time ppl started following the rules completely.

[salvius]

So now it's the drivers fault they have to deal with this bullshit?

[taal]

I think the most common source of physical / verbal abuse I’ve seen is exactly what you mentioned ("Taller, Better") above i.e. Bus drivers who stop because they are ahead of schedule or to buy something – every time this happens I always hear someone mouthing off, usually not to the driver directly but it does happen sometimes. A slap, wow

Most fare disputes that even I have been involved in is when the driver does not believe you’ve paid the right amount. Its not really an issue of someone not paying the fare at all, but giving say only $2.50. A few times drivers do not believe that I put 2.75 when I have and usually reply with a smart comment like "that didn’t look … or sound …. Like 2.75”. Then when they actually count it and see it’s the right amount they usually do not say sorry or anything (Albeit this entire fare issue happens very rarely .. to me at least)

I think there is work to be done on both ends (passenger and driver). There are some passengers who abuse .. shoot .. kick doors but these are the very rare cases. More often its just mouthing off to the driver for whatever reason. On the other side I’ve encountered (Dare I say more frequently) Drivers who are rude to passengers………. The majority however are very kind and curtious.

[Taller, Better]

Originally Posted by Tallinn to Toronto

ouch, that's a little harsh. but MAN do i hate those bus drivers. so this is bascially a work to rule, like when the teachers do their strikes? god forbid they actually do what they're paid to do . . . argh!

It is totally too harsh, and I told that to my friend, but he thought it was
funny( he is young and likes some fisticuff action now and then). I do feel sorry for some of the busdrivers who have the dangerous routes.... not fun.
Also feel sorry for cabbies when crack addicts will kill them for 50 bucks in fares.

[Tallinn to Toronto]

crack addicts may kill a lot of other people too though. the protective sheild thing isn't all a bad idea in cabs, but it angers me that a surcharge would be added to our fare after they'd be installed. apparently the installation would be $600 - $1000 per car - i just don't understand why people taking cabs should have to pay for this out of their own pockets? it should be up to the cab companies to add the extra protection for their workers in their "workplace".

as far as the TTC is concerned, and like i mentioned earlier, ALL money systems (in this regard) should be automated. the subway systems would work much better if all entrances were modifed and automated and bus drivers should also have automated change drops, like they do in most american cities. people couldn't have the opportunity to cheap out, and it would simply speed things up.

[Taller, Better]

A surcharge added for installing a shield in a cab???!!! WTF? That is ludicrous. And
how long would the surcharge stay on? Forever? That is definitely the responsibility of
the taxi companies, just as oil changes, engine repairs.

[Tallinn to Toronto]

http://www.pulse24.com/News/Top_Stor...4-003/page.asp

the article above explains the safety sheilds. and by no means do i think they're a waste of money, they're not. but a surcharge (even if it is only .50) should not be at the cost of the cab rider - the companies NEED to modify their own vehicles.

from the article:

“If we put on every fare a 25-cent or 50-cent surcharge, it would not take long to generate the revenue that would pay for those shields,” Councillor Janet Davis explained.

if it "wouldn't take that long" then why wouldn't the companies just pay for this?

[Taller, Better]

Sounds like the airport "security surcharge" that gets collected every day of the year
and b-all is done with the money for security purposes. Once a surcharge goes on in
this country, it never comes off and people forget what the original intent was.

[Canuck]

I've seen bad drivers and passengers, and great ones from both sides as well.
I've come to the startling conclusion: We're all people, and there is no stereotype that comfortably fits.

I'm ok with bus drivers stopping or slowing down if they have to stay on schedule, precisely because if I was a passenger at an upcoming stop and am waiting from 5:40 to catch the 5:45 bus, I would hate to find out it zipped by at 5:38. It's not bad if another one comes along in 5 minutes, but more likely I won't see another bus for 15-20 minutes.

Pay your fare, treat transit employees with respect (that's a general rule for all people btw), and try and enjoy your TTC experiences.

[Toronto06]

over $2.75? thats just sad......