Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT) workers have been underpaid for years. That’s bad for them, and bad for riders. On Wednesday, October 8, TRU and allied organizations are rallying downtown with DDOT workers to demand higher wages and better bus service.
Meager pay contributed to a serious shortage of DDOT workers, and while that shortage has been partially resolved, workers continue to leave for higher-paid positions elsewhere. As a result, DDOT is forced to spend precious city funds to train class after class of new drivers as others exit the department.
Meanwhile, the Department is still short on experienced mechanics, contributing to the recent epidemic of bus breakdowns. There are also gaps in the ranks of road supervisors – the folks who keep bus operators on schedule.
In Mayor Duggan’s last months in office, we need him to act with urgency to fix this ongoing problem, which contributes to infrequent and unreliable bus service. DDOT has postponed service improvements previously scheduled for September, and as of June – the most recent month for which data has been made publicly available – 1 in 10 scheduled afternoon buses weren’t leaving the station. For those that did, on-time performance was just 60%.
When the City faced a shortage of police officers, the Mayor took action to raise their salaries so they were competitive with suburban police departments. Yet despite incremental increases, and repeated calls for action, starting pay for DDOT drivers is still just $19/hour, far below the SMART system’s starting wage of $27/hour. Some road supervisors make even less than drivers, and even mechanics start at just $25 per hour.
This can’t go on: a functioning bus system is too important to the people of Detroit. You’re invited to join us on October 8, 10 am, at the Rosa Parks Transit Center in downtown Detroit, as we call on the Mayor to bring union contract negotiations to a close and pay our transit workers what they’re worth.