City
TTC Union Chief Blames Riders for Not Waking Sleeping Staffer
It seems that a bizarre incident just got a little weirder earlier today when TTC Union president Bob Kinnear issued a press release pointing the finger at riders for not waking the TTC employee. Apparently, Kinnear feels there was reason to believe the employee might have been ill (not sleeping) and that riders should not have taken a photo or laughed at the situation but instead knocked on the glass to see if "he was unconscious as a result of some medical problem."
The full text of the press release is pasted below.
ATU 113 Statement on picture of TTC Collector:
TORONTO, Jan. 22 /CNW/ - The following statement is issued by Bob Kinnear, President of ATU Local 113, which represents Operating and Maintenance employees of the Toronto Transit Commission:
There have been many media enquires about a picture taken at 10:00 p.m. on January 9 of a TTC Collector described as "sleeping" in the booth. The TTC is conducting an inquiry on this and until this is completed the union will have no comment on the matter except this:
Whatever the outcome of the enquiry, it is very discouraging that the picture taker and, apparently, other customers, made no attempt to determine if there was anything wrong with this TTC employee. A simple knock on the glass might have determined if the Collector was, in fact, asleep, or whether he was unconscious as a result of some medical problem. The reports that passengers were laughing at him as they passed by the booth makes this even more disturbing.
The union will comment further at an appropriate time.
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Lolcat Statement on Bob Kinnear's Statement on picture of TTC Collector:
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Annnd this is why unions are the greatest thing on earth...
The TTC union will protect him I'm sure. He'll be back to his nap time on no time at all!
As it stands he'll likely get moved to a schedule that better accomodates his daily napping routine. Meanwhile everyone else works under a different paradigm: you take a nap at work, you get fired.
This union is a joke.
We have every right to question...
If thats the pose of someone who is "unconscious as a result of some medical problem" then the way i sleep when im not feeling well is not up to snuff.
I dont recall whenever i have been ill sleeping with my legs up, hands folded neatly and my headed tilted back, as if i just passed out in my grade 11 english class.
Get your head out of your ass Kinnear. You useless dick.
"REDUCE SHORT TURNS -- USE REAR DOORS TO EXIT"
It appears that everything that's wrong at the TTC is the riders' fault.
All this latest incident has done is make it abundantly clear that the TTC does not need pay so many people to act as fare collectors - if this guy had enough to do, he would never have been able to fall asleep like that. I'll bet if you cut the number of fare collectors working at subway/RT stations in half (very conservative, in my opinion), the savings would crack 7 figures on an annual basis. Tell me the TTC couldn't use those savings for something more productive.
If I'm tired do you think I can just sleep on the job and my boss would understand? Absolutely not. If I was Kinnear I would thank the customer for pointing this out, maybe give customers a free day of TTC services to enstill confidence back into a system that is clearly crumbling and reassign, if not fire this employee for his lack of respect for his job.
The problem is no one ever takes responsibility. It has nothing to do with unions and everything to do with the individual or individuals in this case. These individuals give a bad name to the many unionized workers who are hard-working, contributing members of the organization.
Nice fluffy pillows and warm blankets for their fare collectors?
Of course, if you tried to wake him up you'd be met with a mouthful of obscenities for waking him up....a TTC tider just can't win.
So, Kinnear, you sleazebag, go f**k yourself
This statement is the biggest joke I've ever heard and only moves me further away from my pro-union stance towards a very anti-union one.
Here is a thought for Kinnear: If someone else was actually "unconscious as a result of some medical problem" it certainly doesn't look like your fare collector is in any shape to do his job and help out! Therefore don't go pointing fingers at the TTC riders!
Just saying - we may not have the full story/picture.
Remember when subway delays were our fault, too?
Since this event happened on Jan 9, I'm presuming that if this employee was in real medical distress Mr Kinnear would know about it by now.
To be otherwise would only indicate the truth, and that is this guy was asleep on his job and not in distress of any sort.
This statement is not from the TTC.
If it was his "break" which is very unlikely, you dont sit in the booth and sleep your ass off. What does that say about an employee and the TTC itself.
Get the F out of here.
I've seen those cardboard things at lots of stations with active collectors. I suspect he just wanted his napping den to stay nice and warm so he wouldn't be woken up by a chilly breeze.
Kinnear's response is something I would expect to read on The Onion - completely unbelievable, presumed tongue-in-cheek and lacking any connection to reality. He wraps quotation marks around "sleeping" even a full two weeks after the fact, as if it's somehow still up in the air whether the employee was actually taking a nap.
Dear Mr. Kinnear: It's not such a big deal that one of your employees was caught grabbing a little shut-eye, but you're making this bigger than it needs to be by pointing the accusing finger your customers.
P.S. - He was asleep, dude.
Perhaps Kinnear unconsciously made the choice to take a stance that was so over-the-top, he wanted to push the envelope of absurdity to find out what he could say without any real repercussions.
Regardless of the actions - or lack thereof - that result after Kinnear's stated ignorance of the pink elephant in the booth, this seems to show the lengths to which he will protect his employees even while the evidence stares him in the face, albeit mouth-ajar .
If disciplinary action is handed down to the Collector after all, it would be a surprise to me after Kinnear's melodramatic defensive stance.
I think Bob Kinnear is the one who needs to wake up.
The man was clearly asleep in the midst of a wonfderful dream of dancing $$ signs.
With the closed board up, he had the nap planned out from the moment his shift started.
Or, perhaps he's just an apologizing self-serving low rent scumbag. Kinda hard to say. Either way, you have to respect that kind of blind devotion to the message, reality be damned.
Yes.
Is sleeping on the job acceptable? Nope.
Was it a good decision to take the picture? Yes.
Should the guy be fired/reprimanded/downgraded/otherwise punished? Unless evidence to the contrary of what the picture suggests surfaces, yes.
Should someone have checked anyway? Yes.
What exactly are people taking issue with? That the union has no comment while the inquiry is under way? (In other words, that they are considering innocent until proven guilty?) That they said they will give such comment at a later time? That they suggested something could have been wrong?
One thing I'd like to see in that release is a closing statement along the lines of "ATU Local 113 considers sleeping on the job unacceptable" -- but I can't blame them for what they *did* say.
As it stands, most common users of the TTC find it to be a horrible and stressful experience full of angry and entitled employees, creating angry fellow riders.
Oh, and the last time I saw someone in medical distress with their hands clasped around their tummy, leaning back straight in a chair, mouth wide open, clearly breathing, was.... oh... NEVER!
This is why nobody bothered to tap on the glass. Make us give a shit about the TTC again - then maybe we will care more. Right now, it is nothing more than an advertisement to buy a car.
This guy just made the mistake of not staying out of view.
http://spacing.ca/wire/2010/01/18/the-ttc-and-torontos-anti-idling-bylaw/
My first impression & memory of moving to Toronto - asking a TTC employee where to put my money and the streetcar driver getting very visibility angry & embarrassing me during rush hour. A TTC rider came up and showed me where to put my money into the slot.
OH, and in case your curious how much these lazy fuckers make, here's the ..
2008 Reported TTC Salaries - http://fwd4.me/CEU
Is it not about time for the riders to take action against the TTC for their lack of service and consideration?
There is absolutely no reasonable explanation as to why this TTC collector would be sleeping on the job. As the TTC had both numerously and outwardly expressed their concern for safety on their transit system, there would just be no way that this kind of behaviour (or lackof)could inspire ANY sort of public safety --- which should be the TTC's main interest. Furthermore, the fact that Bob Kinnear had not addressed this lack of safety practice for the general public, to me indicates that the main interest of the TTC is not in the service of the public (or our tax dollars, for that matter)but to primarily ensure adequate compensation of their employees ... including those who publicly display their affinity to contranvene with their job duties. Aside from the absurdity of the situation, it is also just politically incorrect for this to happen, especially soon after ANOTHER TTC fare increase. It just sends the wrong message to those people whose pockets are greatly infiltrated by these fare hikes.
*TTC RIDERS* The TTC needs to get the picture ...
Let us declare a RIDER STRIKE DAY --- a day where no one rides the TTC and arranges with their colleagues to car pool on that day.
A $6 return fair multiplied by all the daily GTA riders, on that one day (approx. 2.45 Million riders) should send the picture.
I say it should be exactly ONE MONTH from today. FEBRUARY 22 2010 should be dubbed TTC RIDER STRIKE DAY.
Come on Toronto, we need to stick together, TO GET OUR POINT ACROSS.
A Chief accountant only makes $54,000 more than a booth jockey?
Once is a university grad, with many, many accreditations and the other probably only has his GED yet makes almost the same amount?
Screw the TTC
i'm starting my own rickshaw company.
anyone want a job pulling a slow moving wicker vehicle throughout the downtown core?
I'm disgusting now seeing that. No one there makes anything less than $100 grand a year? And why does a station collector make that much, wtf?! Want to start fixing the TTC, start with taking a percentage even of their salary and putting it into infrastructure. Wow, I'm floored.
I'm busting my bike out of the garage.
Sure he would fare much better than this walking piece of shit.
http://twitpic.com/z8p1x
LOL..
He really needs to take some courses in communications and management. He’s coming across as a complete idiot.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/753688--city-s-transit-planners-are-slow-to-learn
Makes you really wonder where our fares are going and the audacity they have to raise them.
TTC employees are PISSED right now because they know they can no longer sleep on the job or do crossword puzzles by the fare box because we're all ready with our cameras...
HA HA HA HA HA WE WIN
But not really.
TTC collector watching a movie on a portable DVD player ....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DNPk5C_COI
Since this event happened on Jan 9, I'm presuming that if this employee was in real medical distress Mr Kinnear would know about it by now.
To be otherwise would only indicate the truth, and that is this guy was asleep on his job and not in distress of any sort.
------
ha ha exactly!
For sure Kinnear would have said something spiteful in his statement about Mr. Snoozeass being sick with something at the time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iGdxFeaEWY
someone. call 911!
That said, I would like to take a moment to appreciate those drivers that take pride in their job and go out of their way to be friendly including: the guy that sings the stops, the drivers that announce stops at tourist attractions in the summer, the driver that bought girl guide cookies from a passenger, then proceeded to share them with us, the driver that repeatedly attempted to get the last person at each stop to sing for the car, the drivers that have said thank you for being such nice passengers, the lady that offered to take us to the point on Queen she was turning around at when we got shortturned on King. While these people are rare, they have unexpectedly brightened my day, and should be applauded for not buying into the dismal anti-passenger culture at TTC.
What would the TTC call this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DNPk5C_COI&;NR=1
those companies and gonvernments that deal with unions and let people that can keeps this guys job need a right long strike. A strike long enough to bring unions in line with reality. Sure, i could totally save this guys job; but why the F should i HAVE to?
I'm willing to be that the collector will claim its a health issue and not have anything done to him.
I'm disgusting now seeing that. No one there makes anything less than $100 grand a year? [...] Wow, I'm floored."
That list only includes employees who made more than $100,000 in 2008. Those making less are not listed.
Quote from the source link (http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/publications/salarydisclosure/2009/):
"The Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act requires organizations that receive public funding from the Province of Ontario to disclose annually the names, positions, salaries and total taxable benefits of employees paid $100,000 or more in a calendar year."
Kinnear is a pompous piece of shit. He is everything wrong with the union mentality.
I'll never forget the bus driver who screamed - SCREAMED - at my 6 year old self when I paid with an outdated-as-of-the-day-before token. And I was with my ancient grandmother who couldn't speak english. Thanks for instilling agoraphobia in an innocent child, you asshole.
And it IS funny. And sad.
I ask that more people take pictures. No more "stories" about bad service lets prove to everyone that the service is bad. And if you are truly angry below is the link to the TTC's compliant website. I just logged my complaint. If enough of us send in complaints, there complaint statistics will go up and there will be pressure on them to do something. Nothing may change, but just complaining to each other on message boards isn't enough and certainly won't change anything.
http://www3.ttc.ca/Contact_Us/Complaints_Compliments_Suggestions/Suggestions_complaint.jsp
I'm not affiliated with the TTC. I think the union boss' comment was stupid. But in their outraged anti-union hysterics, people are all too willing to overlook fact and assume that their first moronic impression are correct.
Now watch as water cooler talk around the city becomes "Did you know that ticket collectors make 100k a year? Outrageous, isn't it?"
There are too many idiots on this thread to bother replying to them all.
The only solution is for the public to make noise and make things intolerable for the government to continue with the status quo. No point going after the TTC directly; they are part of the problem. The pressure must go higher for something to happen.
Given the way this union is acting, I, for one, will welcome our TTC robot overlords, er, automated ticket booths...at least they will do their job.
thanks. bye
This is nothing like that--these entitled babaies are as greedy and out of touch as the bosses at Enron. And they blame the public instead of attempting to improve. They've done nothing that would merit the public's support.
Support them if they act reasonably as a union; don't support them simply because they are a union.
unfortunately, the majority of unions in Canada/US are completely abusive with their power, like the TTC.
btw, Kinnear is an idiot.
Of course, they will spend thousands to come to the same conclusion... and a way to 'spin' this. Why do fares go up while the service goes down the toilet? Why does the TTC keep falling short of cash (which they recoup from all levels of government = YOUR TAX DOLLARS)? Because... of... the... UNION!!!
As an aside my first job was at McD at 6.85 an hour I was taught/trained to greet the customer and smile. Although I work in Cancer research and have no interaction with patients, I have carried this attitude through my life and towards people in general.
Are most TTC employees that disgusted/indifferent towards the public? Also union are great way back when but current times when they advocate superior benefits and wages ONLY then some thing has to change.
Nice try Kinnear. Jackass!!!!!!!
The ttc union is probably the most messed up union in north america. How is it a guy who drives a bus for example gets paid less than a ticket booth collector who sleeps while on duty? Why because he has senority? That is messed up.
Being a bus driver for example is not an easy job as many people think. They have in their hands a full bus load of passengers to drive safely to destination a to b. I don't mind if they get paid 50 k a year (better than hiring someone for less who is not as good nor experienced). But ticketbooth collectors seriously are a waste of taxpayers money.
What time of day was this?
Is it possible he showed up for the first shift of the day a little early, thought he could catch a quick one and never woke up?
"ticketbooth collectors seriously are a waste of taxpayers money."
That would imply the government subsidizes the TTC in any amount worth mentioning
Anyone who rides the TTC regularly KNOWS he's asleep because we see this kind of garbage on a daily basis. Despite living in Toronto, I still believe that unions serve a purpose. Without them, there would be an immediate race to the bottom, and a lot of people would end up with low paying, no security, Wal-Mart type jobs. But increasingly, I have a harder and harder time defending organized labour to friends and acquaintances who would gladly see all unions abolished.
Their purpose isn't to protect lazy and indifferent workers from much needed discipline. When I was a student, I spent a summer working for a municipal government, and it was then that I learned that a lot of what you hear about unionized workers is true. At the time I found it pretty hilarious, but I can remember telling stories about what I'd seen at work and my parents getting really annoyed.
The TTC has degenerated into a pathetic excuse of a transit system. Dirty stations and filthy trains, streetcars that come when they feel like it, booth attendants who snarl at you for merely trying to buy a grossly overpriced MetroPass, or put a handwritten cardboard sign in the window so they can go for a smoke or bathroom break. Not to mention the vital arteries that remain extremely underserved while they build lines to nowhere (the Sheppard stump and Vaughn extension), coupled with the seemingly annual fare increases.
It's reaching a breaking point. There's a level of anger that I've never felt before in the city towards the TTC, the union leadership and upper management. Toronto deserves better. And for Kinnear to insult everyone's intelligence with his B.S. is way beyond unacceptable. The unions in this city, notably CUPE and the ATU are rapidly turning the public against them. They have lost any sense of perspective and purpose, and I'm someone who under other circumstances would consider myself to be on their side.
They need to clean house from top to fu*#ing bottom. Giambrone, Kinnear, the whole lot need to be purged and the organizational culture of the entire system needs a complete overhaul. At the end of the day, they work for us - and someone needs to remind them of that.
(FYI: this guy isnt just lazy, he's a fucking prick too)
Now I see ttc posters warn that any kind of action verbal or physical against a ttc employee, no matter the scale would result in charges being pressed and a criminal record. nice.
I'm forced to miss a half empty streetcar by a conductor, get hands layed on me, grabbed and pushed aside.. and no action is taken against him because his uniform gives him the right to do so. i love i have to ride the ttc everyday with a bunch of pigs in control. fuckers.
From admin http://facemien.com/
Since this is turning out to be a public relations nightmare for the TTC you can be sure the TTC (as employer) is going to want to hang this guy out to dry (fire him or whatever) and show the public the TTC is on their side. Unfortunately, the union feels it's best move to protect their member is to set him up as some kind of victim. It's a stupid defense, but the union's doing its job. It's not about the public, it's about trying to protect this guy's job now that the employer will (rightfully, arguably) try and terminate his employment.
The
Car
Sleep on the job and GET PAID!
TTC come on.....stating the public should have done something?
What a bunch of idiots at the TTC!
Swallow it. Fire them. Move on. IDIOTS!
And we all wish you had a brain.
And to suggest that this photo is evidence that unions have too much power and should be done away with is ridiculous. Even if the TTC wasn't unionized I doubt this employee would be fired. Most likely he would be reprimanded and given a warning, as he should be. Perhaps Mr. Kinnear's remarks were inappropriate (and should rightly be criticized) but that doesn't mean all unions are bad, now and forever. Get a grip, people!
No I don't condone sleeping on the job, but hey, things happen. Have you ever wasted time while at work, on company time with on personal phone call, text messaging a buddy making your beer drinking date, browsing the web on company computers for personal purposes, or talking with other co-workers while hanging out at the photo copy machine.
Give this guy a break people and have a human heart, this is an unfortunate incident and we are all human and mess up. Get over it!!!
IS HE OK?!?!?!?!??!!??!?!
lol
lol
WHEN I SEE SOMEONE NAPPING....FIRST THING I THINK IS....OMG IS HE OK?!?!?!?!??!?!??!
TAP THE SNOOZING MAN ON HIS SHOULDER....
ARE YOU OK?!?!?!??!!?!!??!
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_HwYCqd16Qwc/Rz2UHt0prmI/AAAAAAAAAhs/V87wabwPa70/s400/Nov+2008+-+Sleeping+on+Subway,+Harajuku,+Neat+Bldgs+003.jpg
But if you did wake one of the union nappers they would probably not only snarl at you, they would also be able to visually identify the photographer who could then be sued by the union and the photographer would definitely be greated nastily ever day they ride the "better" way.
I have been informed by an honest TTC worker that they get paid breaks and therefore they do not get to take breaks and with splint shifts, there are no breaks. This was negotiated by their union and so any drivers that go for coffee are taking unofficial breaks.
I am a regular rider and have seen more arrogant, rude, workers than good workers. A lot of drivers just want to drive from A to B and not want to deal with the public. I have seen TTC booths abandoned frequently; I have seen drivers driving fast through stops so he is ahead of schedule to have time for him. Picture yourself freezing out there waiting for the next half hour because the bus you were suppose to catch passed by too early. I have seen drivers making stops to get snacks when they are suppose to be working. Let’s not begrudge a bathroom break but stopping for coffee and snacks depending on how frequently that driver stops will affect someone waiting for that bus.
They are not supposed to get breaks like us who get paid for 7 or 7.5 hours on an 8 hour shift because they get paid for breaks and their shifts are structured very differently from other unionized jobs that get unpaid breaks.In other words THEIR UNION HAS NEGOTIATED NO BREAKS FOR THEM.This may not be healthy for them but this was what negotiated for them.
I personally think the students/young people/teens of Toronto are a huge market of the Metropass. From my experience, adults with salary paying jobs and families at home *typically* ride twice a day - to and from work. Otherwise they have a vehicle for any travel on weekends, after work hours, etc. The young people are the ones going back and forth between school, and home (sometimes multiple times a day). Not to mention taking TTC after leaving bars and clubs, and generally hustling around downtown on weekends. So yes, we get good use from the pass - but stop the hikes where they are! How soon till we're paying $150? Oh right, as soon as the Union goes crying again.
My main point is a lot of people *depend* on the TTC to get around. It makes me sick to see someone who clearly doesn't give a sh*t about their job being defended while we get our pockets turned inside out by the same bigwigs. TTC Union heads need to come back to planet Earth and show some respect to people who need them instead of pretentiously exploiting them, and adding the cherry on top - blaming the riders for their own shortcomings.
P.S. Will definitely have my camera ready for anything I see.