After nearly three full days without bus service in Detroit, the city's transit department and bus operators' union signed an agreement ending a walkout over drivers' concerns for their safety.
Bus service will resume Monday, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 26 President Glenn Tolbert said. The Detroit Department of Transportation committed in the memorandum of understanding signed around 4 p.m. to provide de-escalation training, rules for how bus drivers can defend themselves from harm, increased coronavirus protections and more police presence on buses.
ATU Local 26 has 500 driver members and approximately 300-350 were there for voting, Tolbert said, with a ratio of about 8-to-1 voting in favor of the agreement.
The bus drivers stopped working Friday morning, saying the city was not doing enough to protect them from passenger violence and threats that they say have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. News of the settlement late Sunday afternoon came after talks between DDOT and the union stalled Friday afternoon.
"We're happy," Tolbert said of the deal. "I mean, when you're talking about satisfied … this is a stepping stone for what we need to do. You've got to crawl before you can walk. The thing would be, I mean, they need to do everything they promised to do."
He said he was hopeful to see DDOT implemented timelines. It agreed to begin training on how to respond when riders appear threatening by Nov. 1 and to agree with the union to guidance on allowable self-defense by Dec. 1.
Tolbert said the city has not "stood behind" drivers in the past and taken the initiative to fully protect them. He wants the city to treat buses like other city property — a city office building, for example — in terms of how they are protected.
The agreement did not specifically reference an incident over which DDOT and the union disagreed: Whether a driver who assaulted a passenger recently was justified in doing so as self-defense. That driver was suspended the day before the work stoppage, according to Mayor Mike Duggan.
According to the text of the agreement, DDOT also agreed to:
- publicly affirm drivers' safety is "a top priority" and "violence against coach operators will not be tolerated";
- respond immediately to incident reports and "swiftly and thoroughly investigate all incidents of violent or threatening encounters" against drivers;
- decrease transit police response times (though no specific time is mentioned), and for transit police officers or Detroit Police Department officers to board buses at least 500 times per week;
- install barriers and "restricted area" signs to ensure riders don't come within 12 feet of drivers' seats during the pandemic — an action the union says drivers feel is threatening;
- make public service announcements over the next three months telling the public to wear masks on DDOT buses with nose and mouth covered; not approach drivers, with the exception of front-door boarding for those with disabilities; and that DDOT will prosecute individuals who threaten or harm drivers.
Drivers agreed to contact dispatch right away to report violence or threats and that they should de-escalate potentially dangerous situations while following the law.
DDOT had 684,000 riders in July, the most recent month reported on its website. That's down from 706,000 riders in June and 1.7 million in February, before the pandemic. There is no charge until further notice to ride on DDOT buses, which serve Detroit, Highland Park, Hamtramck and nearby suburbs.
The work contract between DDOT and ATU Local 26 expired in 2018, according to Tolbert, and the two parties are still in mediation over it.
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Detroit bus service to resume Monday after union, DDOT reach agreement - Crain's Detroit Business
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