A change to some transit commuter’s schedules can be expected at the end of the month, as Halifax Transit plans to reduce services across the city.
Beginning Feb. 27, bus routes 41, 178 and 179 will be temporarily suspended due to “ongoing staffing shortages.”
“You can work up to, easily, 60 plus hours a week, and that’s too much,” says Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 508 president Shane O’Leary.
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He says the staffing shortages are the result of Halifax Transit fostering an environment where people don’t want to work.
“Every division at transit is short-staffed. The maintenance department, the ferry division, they’re all short-staffed.”
According to O’Leary, one of the reasons the three bus routes has to be cut is because the limited bus staff is being overworked.
“From years back, the transportation was very good,” says frequent bus user Sudheer Mamidi. “Now, because of so many buses being increased, cutting the routes…I have to change three buses.”
Addressing the route changes, Halifax Transit said in a statement from last month, “this service reduction will be in place until late summer 2023, and if recruitment continues at the current pace, Halifax Transit is planning to return to regular service levels by that time.”
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However, O’Leary says recruitment efforts are hindered by the lack of retention.
“When somebody comes out of training and they find out they’re working 60 hours a week and they’re not getting their days off, they can’t get vacations when they need them, they can’t get time off for doctors appointments…that’s too much.”
Attrition is higher than the hiring that’s happening.
“I do not think that in the next year that they’ll have the work back to the way it was,” says O’Leary. “I don’t think that they’ll be able to hire and retain employees to bring the service back up to where it needs to be.”
He goes on to say that Halifax Transit would be lucky to retain half of the 35 new hires trained since September — as 12 members have already left since the new year.
“Nova Scotia is one of the fastest growing provinces in the country, there should be a line up of people wanting to work here,” O’Leary says. “It should be a worthwhile place to work. Halifax Transit is not the employer of choice at this moment.”
O’Leary says a safe, good working environment with a livable wage will be necessary to see retention of employees resume.
Halifax Transit refused an interview request before deadline.
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