http://wemovehamilton.ca/index.asp?pid=18

i think this is good, no?

Originally Posted by hungdaddy

omg what a hard life. these people suffer so much ...... BARF! these might be problems for a teenager , but if you cant deal with people calling you names and people giving you the finger, maybe you should just stay home lol. for serious, and giving people directions, omg, how do these people do it?? if you know ANYBODY (i used capital werds like u 2), there are alot more problems in life then people not saying hi when they walk on the bus. if they cant cope with the stress levels and high risk life of a bus driver, maybe a successful career isnt in these peeps future. n dats what grinds my gears yo!

Ever heard of grammar and semantics?

Originally Posted by herBs

Ever heard of grammar and semantics?

don't bother. he's just trolling this whole thread.

Originally Posted by RyanC

Yes but what makes our quality of life the way it is, is the ability to negotiate for the fair employment practices, and how we treat people who continue to provide quality service. You shouldn't be arguing that just because jobs aren't as abundant as they historically were is an excuse to decrease job security and treat employees like crap.. should we throw out our idea of fairness, and downsize to the lowest bidder of the job market?

Blackmailing is not negotiating. Rework your chain of argument now.

Originally Posted by RyanC

Whats your point? Public services should be subject to the corporate bottom line? Theres a reason why positions of employment such as this tend towards unionization; people get good at what they do and take pride in it, and with that comes rewards. The thing about what you say about 'if they got paid 11$/hour' is that unless a solid, fair contract is in place for a number of years that outlines the terms/benefits of employment, theres nothing stopping the employer (the city) to arbitrarily make cuts in order to balance their budget.

You're actually arguing my point. The alternative of NOT having a "fair" contract would be a strike ? That's a quite dramatic course of action, isn't it ?

Well my answer to that kind of radical action is hiring of immigrants.

Originally Posted by RyanC

Of course I'm affected; I really hate the time I waste commuting, and adding another hour to that is one less free hour for me to study... this is a red herring anyways. I know this will make it impossible for some people to get to school in a timely fashion. I'll probably ***** too if by the time it happens its too cold for me to bike to school.

This isn't a Red Herring. It's an attack on your credibility. Most people don't actually do the research so they assume each argument is based on facts. I am attacking your credibility as a way to tell people not to listen to your fabricated lies.

Calling it Ad Hominem would be a more accurate statement.

Originally Posted by Reddishh

Well I can tell that they can also do much better with their job. Some drivers use to yell at students and mistreat us.

Well thats certainly gotten better over the years, but so has the amount of people riding the bus. I don't dispute that there are quite a lot of drivers who are pricks; I still think people aren't getting what it would be like to sit on your ass day-in-day-out driving the same routes, dealing with the same kind of jerks all over the wonderful city of Hamilton...

Originally Posted by Reddishh

But most importantly, thet definately don't drive safely. They accelerate and deccelerate real quickly and people standing up can't stay still and I always get headache after riding on a bus.

You mean the skillful and deliberately planned accelerations and decelerations, arcing, perfect lane changes while multitasking all of the various things to consider that are constantly happening they have to take into consideration? Paying attention to dozens of different vehicles, lights, pedestrians, and road topographies, any of which could result in the instant death of 20+ people in their care? Don't forget about having to read the body postures and positioning of random people far in the distance to see if they're catching your bus, the one in front/behind -- the mistake of this reading wastes time enough to possibly miss a light and delay the trip by 30s. I don't know what management does to drivers who screw up the schedules, but I've heard tales of dark horrors at some... mountain garage.

Okay, I'm clearly exaggerating, any monkey can do this job.

Originally Posted by Reddishh

I mean, there are always ways to complain things but you sometimes have to just accept it. And strike isn't definately the best option. So it seems to me that RyanC only looks from drivers' perspective and fails to think from students perspectives.

I'm a student, herp derp. I've encountered all sorts of good and bad people driving the bus from **** to-the-minute transfer-deniers, ones who don't stop unless they saw me at the stop standing still waving my hand, regular coffee-breakers, irresponsible drivers, and generally rude ones.

I'm only being a zealot because of the overwhelming hate/opposition on the other side, most would dismiss this issue immediately just because they're utterly reliant, and can't do without.

Originally Posted by drpatel

http://wemovehamilton.ca/index.asp?pid=18

i think this is good, no?

I get that some people need the money, and maybe this job was the last option they had, but wouldn't they know these things before taking the job? Some of these complaints are like working a desk job and complaining about sitting at a desk all day.

I can get behind the drivers when they're pissed because they were assaulted (because that is unacceptable in ANY job) but long hours and not starting work near your house are just parts of the job (these are parts of many jobs).

Seriously, I'm all for drivers wanting to be treated better by riders, but I don't think that website is doing the union any favours.

Originally Posted by herBs

Ever heard of grammar and semantics?

hahahahahahahahhahaha good one.

Originally Posted by hungdaddy

omg what a hard life. these people suffer so much ...... BARF! these might be problems for a teenager , but if you cant deal with people calling you names and people giving you the finger, maybe you should just stay home lol. for serious, and giving people directions, omg, how do these people do it?? if you know ANYBODY (i used capital werds like u 2), there are alot more problems in life then people not saying hi when they walk on the bus. if they cant cope with the stress levels and high risk life of a bus driver, maybe a successful career isnt in these peeps future. n dats what grinds my gears yo!

How are these problems for a teenager? Any person, regardless of age, can have these sorts of issues. If I had a job where I was constantly being put down, being disrespected, I'd have issues wanting to go to work, too. so I don't blame these people, especially those who have been physically (not just verbally) assaulted, no one should ever have to worry about their own goddamn safety on the job.

And yeah, I know that stuff could be worse, but it can also be a hell of a lot better. That's all I'm saying. You are greatly underestimating the amount of focus and patience needed.

I would bet any money that if you were to drive a bus for a day or two for a full 10 hour shift, with minimal breaks, with rude and demanding people, you would take back most of what you've said.

Don't judge until you've experienced it yourself, people.
That's what "grinds my gears yo!"

oh no! not a 10 hour shift!!!!!