Incident

It is not clear whether the bus operator drove over the foam mattress intentionally, however there are many variables that it is impossible to be certain. By peddling the management’s view those bosses by assigning the blame onto the bus operator are not protecting the member. There are many variables that a bus operator encounters on the road and has to deal with, scientifically there is limited brain power for a human being to consume visual images at a certain time. Based on that lets review some variables that should be used in the future to protect the members. As you are aware there are many hazards on the road: work zones, pavement drop offs, foreign objects, off ramps/on ramps, delivery trucks, taxis, doubled parked cars, pedestrians, bicyclists, children, ice cream trucks, disabled vehicles, accidents - passing drivers tend to slow and look be nosey instead of paying attention to the road, shoppers, confused drivers, slow drivers, drivers in a hurry, impaired drivers. The bottom line is that the bus operator is not like a train operator who is under the dark tunnel with no hazards, no visual, no seeing to the sides and rear, or with challenges of managing space ahead, behind, above, below or tight maneuvers. Based on the above the bus operator has the presumptuousness of innocence - we believe the TWU Local 100 without any reservation.

We here in why did you join the union abhor such views - we side with the bus operator on the presumption of innocence till proven guilty not based on the management innuendos and theories. Now going back to the incident once the bus operator was alerted of a foam mattress under the bus, the bus operator stopped the bus did a under the vehicle inspection and could not find anything which was proper. Then reported to the management - which was proper, and the management instructed the bus operator to keep it in service while the foam mattress was sucked inside the engine later on causing sparks then fire. With the end result of the NYFD coming to the scene to extinguish the fire which resulted in the destruction of the bus.

We do not appreciate in the bosses tone of indicating that they went to great length to preserve the job of this bus operator thus the bus operator should accept with open heart the arbitrator ruling of thirty days suspension. We here in why did you join the union say no, it clear that those bosses were ineffective in adjudicating this matter thus they try to pressure the bus operator to accept this severe ruling. It is their duty to protect the member by making sure the member does not lose a penny - the management instructed the bus operator to keep it in service. Therefore it is incomprehensible that management wants to penalize this bus operator with the cost of the destroyed bus.

This public humiliation of this bus operator should not go unpunished we demand from our TWU Local 100 president John Samuelsen to address Zerega Training facility to seize peddling this story to every bus operator who goes there in the name of training  with the implication that the bus operator was negligent. Otherwise they should pay royalty to the bus operator.