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twc@transportcenter.orgResource Center
The Transit Workforce Center is pleased to host a curated collection of publications and other materials to assist stakeholders engaged in transit workforce development. The Resource Center includes case studies, training materials, research reports, and other materials of interest, including publications produced by federal government agencies, transit organizations, and independent research entities. Resources may be filtered by topic, resource type, and transit mode.
We are continuing to update the Resource Center regularly. Please contact us via the Request Help menu option if you would like assistance using the Resource Center or are looking for resources on a particular topic. We also welcome suggestions of topics or specific resources to add.
Bus Operators in Crisis
TransitCenter’s report, entitled Bus Operators in Crisis: The Steady Deterioration of One of Transit’s Most Essential Jobs, and How Agencies Can Turn Things Around, analyzes the nationwide phenomenon of bus operator shortages and advocates for enhanced job quality in the occupation.
This resource includes links to the report as well as to a webinar from July, 2022.
TransitCenter
July 2022
Traction Power Training Consortium
The International Transportation Learning Center (ITLC) organizes multiple national training consortia to develop standards-based national training courseware for frontline occupations in public transportation organizations.
The Traction Power Training Consortium was launched by the Transportation Learning Center in January 2020. Over the next four years (2020-2023), the Consortium will develop introductory and advanced instruction-ready and interactive courses on traction power maintenance that build on APTA-approved and industry-recognized training standards. Course topics will include: power distribution, industry trends, worker safety, emergency power, tools, and test equipment, catenary and third rail power distribution, grounding, utility power management.
International Transportation Learning Center
July 2022
TWC Mentor Training
Overview: This workshop is designed for employees or journeyworkers designated as mentors to support on the job learning for apprenticeship programs. The content includes a review of mentor roles, an introduction to learning styles, and a facilitated discussion about communication and problem solving. The second half of the workshop includes role playing exercises for the participants to practice what they learned. The instructor leads the participants through a structured review of that experience and review of the mentoring concepts presented. The program acknowledges the wisdom of the mentors and encourages them to view themselves as ambassadors for the apprenticeship and advocates for the apprentices.
Please click to expand and follow the link below for additional details and to submit a mentor training request.
Transit Workforce Center
June 2022
Strategic Workforce Planning in Transit: Fundamentals of Mentoring
This is the third in the Transit Workforce Center’s webinar series on strategic workforce development planning in transit. Labor and management leaders from across the country discussed the impact of mentorship programs in their agencies.
A video recording of the webinar and the associated slides are attached below (click “Learn More” to view the video). Please follow the link below to view all past TWC webinars and to register for upcoming events.
Transit Workforce Center
June 2022
Mentor programs provide a powerful and effective tool for workforce development and retention. For maintenance occupations, mentors deliver hands-on training support, putting skills in diverse workplace contexts beyond the classroom. For bus operators, mentors provide guidance that addresses real world situations, building and expanding on basic training and creating ongoing support for each new operator. In every transit agency across all occupations, seasoned employees have stores of knowledge waiting to be shared. Without mentorship, this knowledge can be lost when workers retire or move on. A well-structured mentorship program, designed in partnership with the workers, ensure this expertise is passed on. Strong mentorship programs also provide mentors with leadership opportunities and mentees with the skills and confidence they need to succeed, increasing expertise and morale throughout the organization.
Bus Operator Recruitment and Retention: Confronting Obstacles and Creating Opportunity
This multimedia case study details a high-road training partnership jointly operated by Golden Gate Transit and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1575. This resource contains a brief written summary, presentation slides, and video of a Golden Gate Transit / ATU presentation, which can be accessed by clicking here, or the “Learn More” button. The entire June 7, 2022 TWC webinar, Recruiting and Developing Today’s Transit Workforce, can be found here. It includes a question and answer session, beginning at 51:53, that covers more detail on this and other recruitment initiatives discussed in the webinar.
Transit Workforce Center, Golden Gate Transit, & Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1575
June 2022
Golden Gate Transit (GGT) serves four counties in San Francisco’s North Bay. GGT suspended approximately 90% of its commute service during COVID. As of Spring 2022, the agency was operating at roughly 50% of pre -COVID service levels, but needed to hire and retain large numbers of bus operators as ridership demand returned. To achieve this goal, a GGT and ATU labor-management partnership created a high-road training partnership that worked with local colleges and California Transit Works to establish bus operator mentorship, pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs. To guide its initiatives and actions, the partnership also examined data and asked underlying questions about the root causes of their employment challenges, resulting in reevaluating and adjusting some of its pathways to employment and hiring guidelines.
The Power of Partnership: Automotive Technology/Collision Career Technical Education Program
This multimedia case study details an internship program developed by the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) and Transport Workers Union Local 208. This resource contains a brief written summary, presentation slides, and video of a COTA-TWU Local 208 presentation, which can be accessed by clicking here, or the “Learn More” button below. The entire June 7, 2022 TWC webinar, Recruiting and Developing Today’s Transit Workforce, can be found here. The complete webinar recording includes a question and answer session, beginning at 51:53, that covers more detail on this and other recruitment initiatives.
Transit Workforce Center, Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA), & Transport Workers Union Local 208
June 2022
Summary:
To meet its need for vehicle maintenance technicians, COTA leadership partnered with TWU Local 208 and Columbus City Schools to provide a Vehicle Maintenance Internship Program, helping students already enrolled in an automotive program to develop additional technology competencies and prepare them for entry level positions. The COTA Vehicle Maintenance Internship Program provides career technical center high school students who have completed their junior year in a participating career-technical program the opportunity to work as paid interns in the Vehicle Maintenance Department at COTA. Students receive classroom training, hands-on training, laboratory experiences, and are partnered with mentors in preparation to enter the workforce as entry level automotive/collision technologies service technicians. From this foundation, COTA has now established a state-registered pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship program to support vehicle technician hiring, retention, and workforce development.
Strategic Workforce Planning in Transit: Recruiting and Developing Today’s Transit Workforce
This is the second in the Transit Workforce Center’s webinar series on strategic workforce development planning in transit. The TWC’s first webinar examined workforce development for the incumbent workforce. This second webinar focuses on how transit agencies and partner organizations are working to meet the significant recruitment challenges across the country and how to best turn these challenges into opportunities to reach, attract, and retain a diverse workforce. Two transit agencies and their labor partners discuss their innovative outreach and recruitment programs–including mentoring, pre-apprenticeships, and community college partnerships–followed by a presentation from a national organization leader who has coordinated cross-sectoral recruitment initiatives with agencies across the U.S.
A video recording of the webinar and the associated slides are attached below (if you are on the main Resource Center page, click “Learn More” to view the video). Please follow the link below to view all past TWC webinars and to register for upcoming events.
Transit Workforce Center
June 2022
Transit Manager’s Toolkit: Driver Recruitment, Training, and Retention
This section of the toolkit introduces both requirements and suggested practices in the areas of driver recruiting/hiring, retention/motivation, and training.