The T has seen a surge of hiring in 2023, MBTA officials said at a Board of Directors subcommittee meeting Thursday morning, but not enough of a spike to quell the ongoing worker shortage.
The agency has hired 782 new workers and lost 407 since the start of the year, Chief Workforce Officer Ahmad Barnes reported in a presentation to the board. The staffing count overall is still around 6,600, Barnes said, well short of the 7,600 positions budgeted for fiscal year 2024.
But hiring in the new fiscal year starting July 1 is “off to a great start,” Barnes said, with an increase of 57 employees in just the last month.
The agency has seen the most turnover in bus operator positions by far, Barnes said. Fifty-two have voluntarily departed, and another 102 were fired during the year.
The agency signed off a new $55 million union contract with its workers at the start of August, raising pay 18% over four years and creates a number of new incentives in an effort to boost the workforce.
At the subcommittee meeting Thursday, members suggested further targeted incentives to work on the issue, including housing subsidies or down payment assistance.
At a second subcommittee meeting, the agency discussed recent safety issues, including a high-profile vehicle-smoking incident on the Red Line in July and a sparking issue that injured a worker around Quincy Center on August 2.
The worker, MBTA Deputy Director of Safety Investigations Asia Williams said, was treated for electrical burns on their hands and eye injuries after a wire contacted the third rail causing an “arc flash.” In response, Williams said, the agency is developing the protocol to use third rail protection work covers during work.
The agency has also launched pilot programs to install additional safety protections and visual cues for employees working in the T system and vehicle inspections, said Meredith Sandberg, MBTA acting Chief of Quality, Compliance and Oversight.
“We’re optimistic that with all three of these pilots, actually we’ll be able to help to continue to refine our safety practices, as well as our collaboration and team problem-solving skills as we continue to work through the challenges that the FDA has identified for us,” said Sandberg.