Washington, DC
see the full file on Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority| Paid training | Metrobus Operator: WMATA pays a training wage of up to $20/hr, rising to $30.62/hr on graduation, and advertises training 'in as little as six weeks' (its own careers FAQ says the Student Metrobus Operator programme is ten weeks). No repayment or clawback agreement is published. But the CDL is NOT free: WMATA's careers FAQ states it does not provide assistance in obtaining the CDL learner's permit or the passenger and air brake endorsements, and does not reimburse the cost of the permit test or renewal - the applicant pays. |
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| No experience needed | Metrobus Operator is advertised as requiring no prior commercial driving experience: WMATA recruits people who have never driven a commercial vehicle and trains them to CDL standard, with a starting package advertised at over $50k including overtime. |
| Union contract | Bus operators become union-represented on graduation from training: union seniority and the 90-day probationary period both start the Sunday after the graduation date. WMATA's operating and maintenance workforce is represented by ATU Local 689. |
| Schedule protection | Honest negative at entry: during training, assignments include day and night, weekday and weekend. On graduation you are placed at whichever garage has the greatest need and your shift is assigned then - the only division a new operator may choose is Landover. Work location, shifts and scheduled days off are explained during training, i.e. after you have committed. |
| Promoted from within | Entry route: you join as a Student Metrobus Operator on a ten-week training programme (the recruitment page advertises 'as little as six weeks'). Absences in the first four weeks are prohibited and unapproved absence can get you released from the programme. On graduation your 90-day probationary period and your union seniority both begin the following Sunday, and seniority is what governs shifts and days off from then on. |
Every claim above is sourced and dated. See sources on the full page.
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