Give Hazard Pay to Public Transit Workers
Throughout the country, transit workers have kept cities and towns moving despite unsafe working conditions, angry passengers refusing to wear masks, and over 200 dying. They deserve hazard pay — and much more.
AC Transit bus driver Sultana Adams, who reported being spat on by a passenger. (Sean Gillane)
Throughout the pandemic, transit workers have kept our cities in motion. In California’s East Bay, even when most residents were isolating at home, AC Transit bus operators were on the front lines ensuring that people could get where they needed to go, including to other essential jobs.
Bus operators spend hours every day in close contact with strangers. More than 200 transit workers have perished from COVID, including members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) and the Transport Workers Union.
Despite this tragedy, and while it has touted their essential work in the press, AC Transit has yet to award hazard pay to frontline employees. The agency currently has a budget surplus of well over $66 million dollars, thanks to the federal relief money it received.
This article is for subscribers only. Please login or subscribe to access our full archives and beautiful print and digital magazine starting at just $3 a month.