State lawmakers must do more to address the MBTA’s severe workforce shortage, a problem that will likely extend service cuts through the remainder of the year, as the agency needs far more manpower to safely operate its current system, a new report found.
The report, released Monday by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, raises doubts over the MBTA’s ability to increase its headcount by roughly 2,000 workers, as stated in its fiscal year 2024 budget plans, pointing to a challenging labor market and a slew of anticipated retirements at the T.
“Even with a larger pipeline, sufficient resources, and faster hiring processes, solving labor force challenges are likely beyond the MBTA’s or any other single institution’s abilities,” the report states. “Ensuring that the MBTA can safely and effectively operate its current system must be the top priority of lawmakers.”
The state’s approach to workforce challenges, however, has been “underwhelming, lacking coordination and scale,” the report contends, stating that the task of attracting talent has historically been left to its financial, academic and health institutions.
When factoring in 1,000 expected departures for the remainder of FY23 and ‘24, the MBTA must hire 2,800 workers within the next 12 months, to meet its budgeted headcount of 7,600 personnel, according to the report.
To put this into perspective, the MBTA hired 2,400 workers while only increasing its headcount by 450, during a four-year span from fiscal years 2019-22. As of March, the T made 690 hires in FY23, but increased its headcount by just 168, due to 522 separations from retirements, competitors and the effects of COVID.
The report points to three major factors driving the staffing shortage at the MBTA: operating budget shortfalls, an aging workforce and a “cumbersome and antiquated hiring process.”
To balance its budget for fiscal years 2015-18, the MBTA reduced its headcount by 659, which represented 10% of its workforce. In FY17, the agency initiated an early retirement program to lower headcount by 300, to help close an $80 million budget gap, the report stated.
A Safety Review Panel report from 2019, which provided a foundation for the federal investigation last year, stated that “the hiring freeze and reduction in headcount was exacerbated by the most seasoned and knowledgeable employees accepting management-sponsored buyouts that resulted in significant brain drain.”
In its final report last summer, the Federal Transit Administration noted shortages in operations control center dispatchers and supervisors, signal technicians, vehicle repairers, heavy and light rail repairers and traction power technicians, all of which had vacancy rates of 20-35% of budgeted positions over the past two years.
Further, citing MBTA payroll data, the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation estimates the T faces shortfalls of about 785 workers in critical job titles, including repairer rail, bus inspector, track laborer, engineer, fueler, repairer line first class, and bus and train operators.
Compared to its average staffing levels over the past four fiscal years, the MBTA currently has 320 fewer full and part-time bus operators and 120 less in training. It also has 125 fewer streetcar and subway operators and 90 less in training, the report states, citing payroll records.
“Factoring the length of time to qualify, hire and train new employees, these shortages are likely to persist, causing services to run less frequently than a year ago,” the report states, referencing subway and bus service cuts already implemented due to workforce shortages.
Exacerbating the T’s current labor shortage is its aging workforce, according to the report, which found that approximately 40% of MBTA departures are due to retirement, a rate “significantly higher than the national average.”
Generally, urban transit employees are disproportionately older than most sectors of the economy, driving up retirements while younger workers seek alternative, higher-paying careers, such as with private carriers FedEx, UPS and Amazon.
The report also points to the vast amount of time it takes the MBTA to hire employees, which a former MBTA board found was between 108 to 284 days in FY15, for the four slowest of its six hiring methods: lottery, union referral, seniority and selection process.
The MBTA this year has taken steps to accelerate its hiring process, scale its outreach and add benefits to retain its current workforce, and now aims to hire 174 employees per month, the report said.
It is also offering incentives such as signing bonuses for bus operators and heavy rail dispatchers, and commercial driver’s license training for bus driver applicants.
The T has cash on hand to significantly increase its headcount, through a $378 million allocation from the state Legislature last year and an additional $20 million proposed in Gov. Maura Healey’s supplemental budget filing, the report states.
Further state action is crucial, however, the report contends, as a failure to solve the MBTA’s labor shortage will result in reduced and disrupted service, continued underinvestment in its deteriorating infrastructure, delay of new initiatives, and the persistence of safety issues.
“How the state steps up to address this growing threat and their impacts on state residents will, in all likelihood, determine Massachusetts’ future,” the report concludes.