Strong Economy Has Left Metro, Other Transit Agencies Desperate For Bus Drivers

[Sherman A1]

A MetroBus driver shortage that prompted two days of delays for riders last month may be part of a larger, nation-wide problem.

On July 21 and 31, Metro told St. Louis mass transit customers on both sides of the river to expect delays due to a shortage of drivers.

The shortages were caused when Metro found its workers were unwilling or unavailable to work an extra shift.

“From time to time we’ve had challenges with workforce shortages, as have our peers,” said Metro Executive Director Jessica Mefford-Miller. “Right now it is very pronounced.”

https://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/strong-economy-has-left-metro-other-transit-agencies-desperate-bus-drivers

[at140]

1. My problem with the strong economy...

The employers must be having hard time finding competent help. They are scraping bottom of the barrel. I am running into so many incompetent and don't give a damn type of service personnel now, compared to just 2 years ago.

[Sherman A1]

2. That part started long ago

back in the 1980s with the WalMartization of the labor force in the Retail and Service sectors. Before then you had people in those jobs that were in their career, making enough to buy a house, car and pay for the kids college. They would never be wealthy by any means but they could pay their bills, had health insurance and have a defined benefits pension to look forward to at retirement.

When more and more firms adopted the part time, lower wage, no benefits (if this one doesn't work out, just get another warm body) approach it was great short term for quarterly but they shot themselves in the foot long term. This shift in how companies operated created a complete missing generation in the Retail Sector that was pretty much nationwide. When I was in my 50s and working there was virtually no employees in their 40s and very few in their 30s. Now retired and going into the chain where I worked I look at the faces of 20 year olds in management positions that are completely unprepared with work experience or life skills for the jobs they hold.

They have now pretty much run through those who would fill those jobs and all the experienced help has either left, been laid off or retired, so now they all compete for the bottom of the barrel.

[at140]

3. I did not observe this problem until mid-2017

I don't know where you live, but I am in NE Florida near Jacksonville. Moved here 3 years ago. What impressed me immediately was how good the help was here in service industry. No more.

[Sherman A1]

4. I'm in Missouri

If you had good service, you were a lucky one. Certainly there are folks out there of every age group that are trying their best to do a good job and serve their customers, but overall there is little incentive to do so as the jobs have no real future(even less so now as many will be automated away in fast food, retail, distribution and transportation).

Management treated workers as disposable for decades and now with a tighter economy workers are treating companies the same way. Customers are caught in the middle.

[at140]

5. Management is all about bottom line!

They will never be benevolent. It was exactly the same when I worked in India.

[Sherman A1]

6. Precisely

It would say they are about the short sighted next quarter bottom line and not the long term one, but you are absolutely correct.