The Mike Haddad Show: This is relevant to my interests.

So. The TTC is back to its regular (almost) working glory. I'm not going to be using it until Wednesday when I go to write my micro final, so I'm going to be missing out on the first full-day back experience. The whole time everyone was talking about how the union members needed to be protected from the CRAZY public. Ask Union President Bob Kinnear:

"We have assessed the situation and decided that we will not expose our members to the dangers of assaults from angry and irrational members of the public...We have a legal responsibility to protect the safety of our members and so does the TTC."

Now, here's my issue with that. I get paid just under 1/3rd what most of the TTC staff makes. I have no protection from the angry and irrational public. Don't believe me? Take one moment to walk into ANY entry-level job where you have to deal with consumers. Part of my job is forcing myself to be nice to people even if I don't want to be.

My mom was talking about how some drivers are apparently attacked by people who are mentally unstable and sit along Queen near the crack hospital. If that's true, it's definitely a shame. I don't think I ever blogged about it, but I was attacked by an angry, alcoholic, piece of shit homeless guy on my second shift. My second TRAINING shift. I was lucky that I was tall, but I'm hardly buff. The two girls who were working with me at the time were tiny and wouldn't have been able to handle it. They called the cops. They were shaken up. If TTC drivers are being harassed, then the TTC Special Constables should be doing more about it.

As for being mistreated AFTER the fact, I doubt that. We've had a solid weekend of news coverage absolutely tearing the union leadership to shreds. As it should have been. They still haven't fessed up and told us what they told their union members to get them to vote against a contract that gave them WAY too much to begin with.