The New York Times, December 19, 2005, Monday

Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company
The New York Times

December 19, 2005 Monday
Late Edition - Final

SECTION: Section B; Column 6; Metropolitan Desk; Pg. 4

HEADLINE: Little Dignity On the Job, Workers Say

BYLINE: By SEWELL CHAN and STEVEN GREENHOUSE

BODY:
Regardless of whether a strike is called or a settlement is reached, the protracted labor negotiations over a contract for 33,700 subway and bus workers have highlighted one fact: Many workers feel they lack dignity and respect on the job.
Bread-and-butter issues -- wages and pensions -- have been the dominant concerns at the bargaining table, but leaders of Local 100 of the Transport Workers Union have repeatedly said that their members were equally animated by workplace conditions including on-the-job hazards and abuse from riders.
In a survey of 792 bus drivers, station agents, subway conductors and train operators released last week, Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations provided considerable evidence that many workers feel mistreated and undervalued -- which could push them toward greater militancy.
The survey, which was conducted in the spring and summer, found that 24 percent of bus and subway workers said they faced serious hazards more than once a month, including smoke, dangerous chemicals and extreme temperatures. It also found that 70 percent felt that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's policies and procedures were unfair.
Many workers said their jobs failed to provide for essential needs. For example, 78 percent said they lacked access to bathroom facilities at least once a month; 51 percent of bus drivers said they had problems finding a bathroom one or more times a day.
New York City Transit, the authority subsidiary that runs subways and buses, issued 15,200 disciplinary violations last year, but workers said they felt they were often blamed while supervisors and passengers were not held accountable. In the survey, 13 percent said they faced abuse from supervisors regularly, while 74 percent said they faced a verbal or physical threat from passengers at least once a year.
The survey, however, also revealed positive attitudes. Nearly 50 percent of transit workers said they would recommend the job to a friend or family member, and they were generally moderately to very satisfied with their jobs. The study asked about working conditions, but not about wages and benefits.
Samuel B. Bacharach, a professor of labor management at Cornell, oversaw the survey, which was part of a series that includes data from store workers, steamfitters, ironworkers, electricians, firefighters and emergency medical workers.
An authority spokesman, Tom Kelly, said officials had not seen the report and could not comment on it.
Several workers interviewed in the last two weeks expressed sentiments similar to those in the survey.
''The job itself, I like,'' said Hugh C. Henry, a bus driver in Brooklyn. ''It's the way I'm treated that I don't like.''
Valerie Spears, a station agent in Manhattan, said she was angry that agents were being asked to stand outside their booths to answer questions. She noted that agents had been beaten and even killed on the job. ''I can't settle for what they're trying to do to us,'' she said. ''I don't want to be killed in front of a booth.''
Jimmy Williams, a station cleaner, said: ''We need better facilities. It's cold. No clean restrooms. No ventilation. We have peeling paint in the rooms where we change. There are no tables for lunch.''
Horace Edwards, a subway-car inspector, said he was under pressure to allow cars into service. ''With management, it's all about performance,'' he said. ''They want the subways cars to be on time. A lot of cars go out with violations. They tell us to overlook it.''

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