Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Right Rail or is it Wrong Rail?
Got an email from a driver with the above title as the subject.
As for it not having anyone to pick up... I don't know about that. But I think it is safe to say that it won't bail VTA out of its financial crisis.
Why the hell has light rail been running the past few weeks without passengers every day over and over repeatedly on the NEW Capitol corridor??? Thought we didn't have money to waste. Well this seams to be a waste of money to me. Why don't they wait until the posted start date? It will have just as many people to pick up as it does now.They are probably getting drivers used to the new line and orienting them on its quirks.
As for it not having anyone to pick up... I don't know about that. But I think it is safe to say that it won't bail VTA out of its financial crisis.
Comments:
So stupid. So do drivers bring thier babies in car seats or what? Do they cause a DISTURBANCE! I don't think so. The last time I checked VTA is a PUBLIC transportation.
And how convenient
just in time for summer
P.S. Does this rule apply to "all" VTA emploees. I dont think so. Why are they harassing just the drivers?
And how convenient
just in time for summer
P.S. Does this rule apply to "all" VTA emploees. I dont think so. Why are they harassing just the drivers?
# posted by 
: 7:11 PM
: 7:11 PM
It has always been that way, especially when they are under the gun of financial crisis. They know they are in trouble and that their own employees are in a position to expose their abuses. The more of those employees they can dispose of, the less chance of their own misdeeds being exposed internally. By keeping employees on the defensive through attacking their workplace behavior, they avoid having a critical and effective spotlight shined on them.
They don't care if employees complain about abuses of the labor contract, because that keeps attention away from the more important issues affecting the organization, such as the hundreds of millions of dollars being spent on BART, Light Rail, and new facilities and equipment when there is not enough money to fully staff Operations. Such tactics prevent employees from focusing and asking critical questions.
Back in 2002 just before the first layoffs happened, VTA was still hiring drivers and telling them in training that their jobs were secure. This was happening when the rest of Silicon Valley was entering a second year of deep, pervasive layoffs.
Several employees asked pointed questions of Cipola and Tucker concerning this behavior, and they had no satisfactory answers. They claimed that there was no way for them to know what was going to happen to their funding.
Their funding comes primarily from local sales taxes. The local economy was in its second year of deep decline. But they could not connect the dots.
They have not cut spending since. Instead, they have accelerated it, spending $52 million just to study the proposed BART extension to San Jose, replacing the North Yard facility with brand new buildings, buying unneeded new light rail trains, and embarking on construction of two light rail lines. While all of this new spending was taking place VTA laid off drivers twice.
Since then they have launched a campaign to eliminate critical employees any way they can and terrorize those who remain in order to distract them from all of this.
Upper management are crooks. They don't give a flying fuck about drivers. But worse, they don't give a damn about the public money they are going out of their way to squander, and even have plans to ask for more in a 2006 ballot initiative to increase sales tax... again. Remember, in 2000 they succeeded in raising sales taxes to get more spending money.
They have no plans to live within their means and will stop at nothing to prevent anyone from exposing that fact.
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They don't care if employees complain about abuses of the labor contract, because that keeps attention away from the more important issues affecting the organization, such as the hundreds of millions of dollars being spent on BART, Light Rail, and new facilities and equipment when there is not enough money to fully staff Operations. Such tactics prevent employees from focusing and asking critical questions.
Back in 2002 just before the first layoffs happened, VTA was still hiring drivers and telling them in training that their jobs were secure. This was happening when the rest of Silicon Valley was entering a second year of deep, pervasive layoffs.
Several employees asked pointed questions of Cipola and Tucker concerning this behavior, and they had no satisfactory answers. They claimed that there was no way for them to know what was going to happen to their funding.
Their funding comes primarily from local sales taxes. The local economy was in its second year of deep decline. But they could not connect the dots.
They have not cut spending since. Instead, they have accelerated it, spending $52 million just to study the proposed BART extension to San Jose, replacing the North Yard facility with brand new buildings, buying unneeded new light rail trains, and embarking on construction of two light rail lines. While all of this new spending was taking place VTA laid off drivers twice.
Since then they have launched a campaign to eliminate critical employees any way they can and terrorize those who remain in order to distract them from all of this.
Upper management are crooks. They don't give a flying fuck about drivers. But worse, they don't give a damn about the public money they are going out of their way to squander, and even have plans to ask for more in a 2006 ballot initiative to increase sales tax... again. Remember, in 2000 they succeeded in raising sales taxes to get more spending money.
They have no plans to live within their means and will stop at nothing to prevent anyone from exposing that fact.
