Halifax Transit recruiting more ferry operators

Halifax Transit is in the process of recruiting more ferry operators to address staff shortages, reduced services and cancellations, but the union still has concerns about management style and work environment.

"Throughout the years, we do regular recruitment for operators across buses and ferries, but definitely this year we've had significantly more candidate pools and more hiring than we typically would have,"  Maggie-Jane Spray, spokesperson for the Halifax Regional Municipality, told CBC's Information Morning on Monday.

Spray said three recently hired operators are being trained and should be ready by mid-December. She said two more ferry operators will be hired in the coming weeks.

"The goal of all of this hiring is to bring our staffing levels back to within normal range," Spray said, adding crossings could be reduced or cancelled for emergencies.

Shane O'Leary, president of Local 508 of the Amalgamated Transit Union, told Information Morning last week there were only eight ferry operators in the municipality. He criticized Halifax Transit management and said the work environment was unwelcoming.

"Halifax as a municipality should be able to have lineups out the door for all positions within the city and this city cannot keep employees," O'Leary said.

O'Leary said eight captains worked 4,000 hours of overtime for the ferry service over the last year — equivalent to two full-time jobs.

Spray said she is aware of concerns around overtime for operators.

"With the current staffing shortage, overtime is unfortunately a reality. As much as we can do, we only call them in when it's absolutely necessary," Spray said, adding once more operators are hired it should help with the overtime situation.

Spray wouldn't comment on criticism of management.

When there are cancellations, Spray said Halifax Transit tries to get the message out as quickly as possible on social media and have shuttle buses in place to move passengers.