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PollWould you all be happy with Configuration C or Configuration B for the new BART Cars?
1. Concept C http://bart.gov/docs/cars/interiorConepage.pdf
53%
2. Concept B http://bart.gov/docs/cars/interiorBonepage.pdf
42%
3. Concept D http://bart.gov/news/articles/2012/news20120112.aspx
5%
Total votes: 19
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Union contractI'm curious why there are so few complaints about BART workers, when during the 2009 contract negotiations they were portrayed on this site as one of Rick Santorum's Satanic forces threatening our very survival. Are comments against union members so transparently generated by BART management and its high-priced PR flaks? Just wonderin ... |
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Never fear ...once the new
Never fear ...once the new contract comes up BART employees will all be the secret spawn of satan again....and BART will be broke . Just have to wait a bit longer.
It is coming.
So why don't union members do
So why don't union members do something about changing that perception before it starts again? By the time BART starts hammering them with their high priced PR it's usually too late.
Good question. I never have
Good question. I never have understood why the unions (and non unions) do NOT get out ahead of barts pr machine.
It comes down to $$$$$ MONEY
It comes down to $$$$$ MONEY $$$$$, That was brought up before..
BART Management has, well, our (TAX payers/riders) unlimited money, to spend to make the public think the Employees are to blame..
(+ tacticks like, Short staffing dept's 2 years before contract, provides OT, provides inflated salaries, makes public find a few employees making 80k-110k/yr)
BART Unions are not the wealthy ones, they have to assess their members for money.. Also Union Members are forbidden from speaking to the media (per BART Management rules)
PR Machines are expensive to run..
Traffic on this site has gone
Traffic on this site has gone way down because the moderators got heavy-handed and started banning people, deleting posts, etc. There were also a few long instances of downtime and the like.
And why complain about something that's constant? Frontline BART employees are always lazy and overpaid. It happens every day, so it becomes matter-of-course.
The only times the public gets up in arms about it is when they're reminded of just how much these people make to sit on their asses and push a button/ignore fare evaders.
Define who you consider a
Define who you consider a "front line" BART employee please?
Station agents & train
Station agents & train operators mostly.
AND you should complain about
AND you should complain about "Frontline BART employees" that are not doing what they are supposed to.. BART's website has a complaint page, or get a comment card from a Station Agent.. Etc..
Oh and BART Police are not allowed to "sit on their asses and .... Ignore fare evaders" They stand and ignore fare evaders.. (Agents BTW do not deal with Fare Evasion, they're not cops, read the top of the booth, it states INFORMATION)
Agents are told not to get into confrontations (although I don't know why some do.. They should just do their job and help those that need help, and ignore the people that don't want/need help).. Some get over zealous or think they're cops..
99% of what Station Agents
99% of what Station Agents can do could be done by a touch-screen computer.
The more jobs Station Agents won't do, the easier they will be to replace with machines.
BART pays too much for
BART pays too much for unskilled work, but not enough for skilled work. Part of this is the fault and/or strategy of the unions, i.e. if you can put both a necessary skilled job and a semi-skilled worker in the same union, the semi-skilled worker will do better. The unfortunate side effect is that skilled positions go unfilled and many departments are short-staffed. Why, for example, would a skilled network engineer come to BART for $70K when they can make $100K easily in Silicon Valley?
As for the pattern:
1. BART "finds" extra money for projects.
2. Six months before contract time, BART is "broke" and in the "worst financial shape ever"
3. BART brings out "averages" that include manager salaries and "miscellaneous benefits" that are never explained (i.e. they list health care, etc. separately, then $1K a month in "miscellaneous" on top of that but no one ever knows what it includes).
4. The unions threaten a strike.
5. The public goes ballistic.
6. BART's P.R. plan has already been laid before the unions are even allowed to speak. They trot out the 1-2 Station Agents who are working 100 hours a week as examples of the excessive pay.
7. Everyone gets the same crappy 0-2% raises, well below inflation, and even more skilled people head out the door for higher paying jobs.
8. Managers replace those who left with consultants making double what any employee makes.
9. A few months later, in a Board meeting, BART votes 5% or higher raises for top managers and executives, but it's barely mentioned.
10. Go back to step 1 and repeat.
This is exactly what happened
This is exactly what happened the last two contracts! No raises in over 9 years! I don't care how much people make...no worker at any type of job would want to go THAT long without any type of raise!