According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (2019), workers who interact directly with the public face a higher risk of violence. Transit workers encounter assault on many occasions from aggressive passengers. When violence is initiated against the operator while driving the vehicle, the rest of the passengers' lives are endangered. This research paper is a review of the case study ABQ Ride employee . The report highlights the role of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). It also provides insight into the measures and policies that should be taken to safeguard transit operators.
Role of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a creation from the Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970 by congress. OSHA is mandated to ensure that employers and employees work together to reduce work-related injuries, fatalities, and sicknesses (United States Department of Labor, 2006). The roles of OSHA include; hearing and responding to employee appeals, issuance of hazard alerts to safeguard employees, setting health and safety standards, provision of training and education, and researching workplace safety.
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Hearing and Responding to Employee Appeals
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is mandated to listen to worker grievances and concerns with health and safety implications. In the case of ABQ Ride employee, the workers were supposed to report their employer to OSHA. ABQ Ride's leadership failed to take action after several incidences of violence involving the company's operators. The ABQ employees have a right to request OSHA to investigate and inspect the safety of the work environment.
Setting standards in Occupational Health and Safety
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) sets the health and safety standards for all the workplaces in America. According to the article, "ABQ Ride employee: I wouldn't allow my family to ride a bus," the standards set to ensure transit safety are inadequate. The article presents concerns about the safety of drivers from aggressive passengers.
Training and Education
Although OSHA trains and educates employers and employees on the essence of healthy and safe workplaces, more needs to be done to evaluate the effectiveness of the training. The provision of educational resources and training manuals can be ineffective in occasions that involve violence such as the ABQ Ride employee case. OSHA should set guidelines that ensure that law enforcement agents adequately protect the employee.
Case Analysis as ABQ Director of Safety
Measures to ensure Driver Safety
As the Director of Safety at ABQ, I propose various measures to guarantee the safety of ABQ Ride drivers. These measures would range from technological measures, policing, and information systems to self-defense training.
Technology and Information Systems
The incorporation of technological options onboard is fundamental to guarantee the safety of the drivers. First, I would introduce emergency communication systems such as alarms and panic buttons. The systems will be located in the driver compartment, which should be reinforced with barriers. These emergency communication systems will only be utilized when the driver is in distress from a current threat. The restrictions should shield the driver from direct and close contact with passengers making it difficult for aggressive individuals to assault the driver (Transit Advisory Committee for Safety (TRACS), 2015) . The networking of video surveillance with law enforcement agencies and the head office's command center could help identify possible threats and assess current aggressive situations.
Barriers
As the Director of Safety at ABQ Ride, I recommend Plexiglas barriers. The Plexiglas barriers are made of explicit shatter-resistant thermoplastic material. Plexiglas also has high strength and is transparent, which makes it a suitable barricade.
Information Systems and Video Surveillance
The inclusion of information systems in ABQ Ride is essential since it will enable the collection of data and the gathering of intelligence. Through data analysis, the company will be able to allocate resources to the most vulnerable sections and routes strategically. Information Systems such as CompStat has significant impacts on transit employee protection through crime mapping, data analysis, and the identification of crime hotspots.
Policing
I propose the increase of security guards to police ABQ Ride buses. Policing is acknowledged as an effective strategy to ensure safety. The current number of 20 security guards for the entire Albuquerque city is low. In the ABQ Ride employee case analysis, the security guards are understaffed, making them unable to protect the drivers from aggression and violence adequately. Understaffed workers are usually overworked, which eventually affects their performance (Nakanishi & Fleming, 2011) . I propose the increase of security guards from twenty to fifty, which will guarantee a high police per bus ratio hence increasing security.
Training
As the safety director, I recommend additional training of ABQ employees in conflict resolution, customer relations, and stress management. Verbal techniques should also be encompassed in practice. Self- defense training is also vital as it enables drivers to protect themselves when they are under attack (Stanley, 2015). Although self-defense could result in liability, I recommend it for strictly drivers with a background in law enforcement. Such drivers are familiar with the legal framework on self-defense.
Policies
Suspension of Service
The first policy I would implement is the suspension of service against passengers who assault drivers and passengers. The implementation of such provisions in other agencies such as Metro Transit in Madison and Sun Metro in Texas has proven effective in preventing repeat offenders from accessing buses.
Increase penalties for assaults
Another effective policy I would implement is the introduction of legislation that ensures severe penalties for passengers who assault operators. Through the ATU, I will advocate for the enactment of laws that safeguard drivers and transit operators.
Fare Policy
I would propose a strict fare policy to reduce conflicts between drivers and passengers. The collection of fare significantly contributes to disputes between operators and passengers (Nakanishi & Fleming, 2011) . Complex fare structures often result in disagreement between the operators and passengers, leading to aggression.
Cost of Implementation
Since the cost of implementation of all the proposals for the safety of ABQ Ride drivers is very costly, I would suggest a strategic approach in stages. ABQ Ride Management should start with fundamental safety measures and policies such as barriers and the fare policy.
References
Nakanishi, Y. J. & Fleming, W. C. (2011). Practices to protect bus operators from passenger assault. https://doi.org/10.17226/14609
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. (2019). National institute for occupational safety and health/Occupational safety and health administration. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition , 2 (1), 1-48. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483386874.n344
Stanley, J. (2015). Prevention of Aggression to Bus Driver. Researchgate , 1 , 1-50. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Janet_Stanley3/publication/280641691_Prevention_of_Aggression_to_Bus_Drivers/links/55c097bb08ae092e9666c6d3/Prevention-of-Aggression-to-Bus-Drivers.pdf
Transit Advisory Committee for Safety (TRACS). (2015). Preventing and Mitigating Transit Worker Assaults in the Bus and Rail Transit Industry. https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/Final_TRACS_Assaults_Report_14-01_07_06_15_pdf_rv6.pdf
United States Department of Labor. (2006). All about OSHA . Occupational Safety and Health Administration. https://www.osha.gov/Publications/about-osha/3302-06N-2006-English.html
