From Brian Funk, Acting Chief Operating Officer
The prevalence of COVID-19 cases in our community and in our workplace has always fluctuated.
But the dramatic increase in new cases we’ve experienced over the past few weeks is unlike anything we’ve seen since the pandemic began. About 1 in five of all the cases we’ve seen here at Metro Transit have been reported since December 25.
Each of these cases is concerning because we know full and quick recoveries are not guaranteed. Because of the continued risks, all of us must take this seriously and do our part to protect ourselves and those around us.
In practice, that means getting vaccinated and boosted when we can do so, getting tested and staying home if we don’t feel well, wearing a well-fitted mask, and limiting close interactions.
Nearly two years into this pandemic, I know maintaining these habits isn’t easy. We’d all like to let our guards down, to live without this uneasiness and uncertainty, and to simply spend more time with one another. Unfortunately, we’re not there yet.
The good news is that most public health experts agree this rapid rise in cases will be short-lived. Cases associated with this new variant, on average, have also tended to be less severe, especially for those who have been vaccinated and boosted.
About 80% of our employees have reported being fully vaccinated, and our weekly testing program has helped to proactively identify positive cases.
So, there are reasons to be optimistic. But there is no avoiding the fact that the significant challenges we’re facing today will be with us a while longer.
Our biggest challenge, aside from keeping everyone safe, is simply having enough people available to keep buses and trains running as scheduled.
We are about 20 bus operators short of our ideal staffing level, and the recent uptick in cases has left us even more short-handed. Please know how much your continued persistence is admired and appreciated.
I recognize that it is also difficult to bring energy to our work while grieving the loss of co-workers and loved ones, caring for children, and missing the people and activities that bring us joy. These hardships are not lost on me, and I want to support your wellbeing in any way I can.
This pandemic has tested all of us in unforeseen ways, and the trials aren’t yet over. But through it all, I continue to be amazed by the determination and the spirit you all bring to your work every day. As always, thank you for your service.
Vaccine buses recognized by Dept. of Human Services
Efforts to retrofit a fleet of buses to serve as mobile vaccination units earned acclaim this week from the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). DHS officials today will present Metro Transit with a Circle of Excellence Award, which recognizes organizations for expanding access to food, health care, and other assistance. The buses have been used at 170 clinics statewide, serving more than 7,000 people.
Read more about the vaccine buses
Recent service changes extended, more reductions ahead
Due to the ongoing bus operator shortage, service is expected to be reduced in March. Current schedules will remain in place until Friday, March 25, two weeks longer than previously planned. The next pick will also serve as a system pick, allowing operators to move between garages.
Resources and more information
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Tom Humphrey usually kept a pretty full calendar. But if someone needed his help, he always found the time.
“I almost felt sorry for the guy because of how available he was,” said Abel Mumbi, assistant director of Bus Maintenance. “I’d call him, he’d be at the Grand Canyon, and he’d still pick up and say, ‘What can I do to help?’”
That willingness to help stood out to many who worked alongside Tom during his nearly 42-year career and who are remembering him following his passing on Saturday, Jan. 8. Services will be held next week.
Tom’s career began in March 1980, as a cleaner. Over the following decades, he worked his way up into technician, supervisor, manager, and assistant director roles in Bus Maintenance. He moved to asset management in 2017, where he served as director.
Mumbi crossed paths with Tom during his interview, and quickly recognized he was someone he should get to know. So after he was hired, he asked to interview Tom, an offer that was quickly accepted.
"I was working second shift but he still made the time to come see me and gave me some the best advice I ever got in terms of my career here," Mumbi said. "We all need champions in our life and for me he really played that role."
Applications Developer Scott Weis also worked with Tom while he was in Bus Maintenance, learning to build programs that could help managers keep better track of personnel and maintenance issues. Scott remembered Tom as a self-taught “visionary” who was always thinking about how processes could be improved.
More than his technical prowess, though, Scott recalled Tom as a welcoming person who always had stories and photos to share from his many travels. “What I remember most is the smile and the charisma he would bring to a room,” Scott said. “Whenever I had a meeting with Tom, I was always confident and calm because I knew we were going to come to consensus.”
Tom and his younger brother John Humphrey, who passed away earlier this month and worked at Metro Transit for nearly 33 years, will each be inducted into Metro Transit’s Hall of Fame.
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Several bus and train operators are celebrating career milestones this month. From left to right:
- South Operator Art Shelton, who retires next week with 42 years of service. Before becoming a bus operator, Shelton served as a police officer. While thinking about a new career, a former operator and friend pointed him to Metro Transit. “I took a test, passed, and the rest is history,” he said. In retirement, he hopes to be the best volunteer he can be, sharing his time and talents helping stock homeless shelters with winter clothing. He also plans to walk dogs living in shelters – animals that are near and dear to his heart.
- Train Operator Jerry Fredine retired on January 6 with 25 years of service.
- Heywood Operator Reyford Hayes retired this month with 25 years of service
- Heywood Operator Duane Moore was recently recognized for 30 years of safe driving. Duane said the significant achievement was something he'd strived for throughout his career. A relief instructor, he credits his success to following the Safety Keys and setting his mirrors correctly. "The number one thing I tell people is that my mirrors have been my success," he said.
To celebrate a retirement or career milestone in Insights, please email insights@metrotransit.org.
Several new bus operators recently completed their training at the Instruction Center. From left to right, they are: Tiffany Giebner, Tajammul Khan, Orlando Flynn, Erik Halsey and Jon Nelson.
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Hiring events: One-day bus operator hiring events will be held at the Instruction Center on Saturday, Jan. 15, and Tuesday, Jan. 19. Lean more here.
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Referral bonus: Remember, all employees can earn a $600 bonus for referring a successful bus operator candidate.
Welcome to these recent new hires
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Evan Owens-Ambrogio, principal engineer, Arterial BRT. Evan will lead the design of the METRO E Line, the planned upgrade to Route 6. A Cannon Falls native, Evan is a UW-Madison graduate who has worked as an environmental field engineer and geotechnical project manager. He joined the Council’s Environmental Services division in 2017. Evan lives in south Minneapolis and enjoys biking, camping and photography.
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Christy Kubinski, facilities administrator, Engineering & Facilities. A Minneapolis native, Christy enjoys live theater, hiking, meditation and yoga. Christy is based at Transfer Road.
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The Black History Month Committee is inviting employees to participate in an online talent contest to help celebrate Black History Month. To participate, employees are invited to submit short videos showing their talents as soon as possible. The videos will be shared during events that will be hosted on Fridays in February, which is Black History Month.
Videos can be uploaded to YouTube or shared through OneDrive with Traci Williamson and Drew Kerr. For more information, contact committee members Traci Williamson, Devona Love or Demetre Muhammad.
Employees are also invited to order a "soulful dinner" to enjoy during the Friday, Feb. 25, event. Pre-order online here.
Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Several local events will be held on Martin Luther King Jr., Day, Monday, Jan. 17.
- The Council's Equity Change Teams will celebrate King Jr.'s legacy during an online event at noon on Friday, Jan. 14. The event will include a showing of an interview with the late Congressman John Lewis, a panel discussion and time for open discussion. Join the event using this link.
- The state's 36th annual celebration will begin at 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 17, on YouTube.
- The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board will host its annual celebration from 6:30 p.m. to 8p.m. Monday, Jan. 17, at the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Recreation Center on Nicollet Avenue.
- MCTC is hosting a virtual event featuring student essays about Martin Luther King, Jr. on Thursday, Jan. 20.
Heywood Operator Brian Logan recently made a customer’s day by being alert and courteous.
I was not paying attention to the exact time of the scheduled stop at Penn and Plymouth and found myself running the last 25 yards to try to catch it. The driver had already opened the doors, closed them and was just starting to take off. Somehow, he was aware of me sprinting toward the bus and graciously opened the doors. If I would have missed this bus it would have been my fault. Because of this kind bus driver I got to work on time! For as long as I have experienced this driver, he has always been very safe, professional, and courteous.
Bill Dexheimer Pharris
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Metro Transit employees come from many cultures and backgrounds. To celebrate this diversity, employees who are proud to share their heritage and identity will be regularly featured on the Riders' Almanac blog. Read more stories here.
So, tell us a little bit about your background.
I was born in Massachusetts, grew up in Washington state and then moved to Minnesota for college. My parents both came to the U.S. from Cambodia as refugees – my mom came in the 1970s when she was younger and my dad, who is Malaysian, arrived as an adult in the 1980s. Growing up, I didn’t really experience a connection to their culture. It was a force in the background but never really anything explicit that we celebrated. Like a lot of immigrants, our experience was one of trying to blend in as much as possible.
How and when did you start to think more about your identity?
It wasn’t until college that I started to fully recognize and come to terms with my identity as a Person of Color, and more specifically as a Southeast Asian American woman, and to figure out what that meant to me. I was going to school in a rural setting and seeing myself in this new context. And because I was studying sociology and anthropology it made sense that I’d turn that gaze on myself.
Part of that came back to the mindset of wanting to make the most out of my parents’ journeys and translating that into what I do personally. I started to think about taking the opportunities that my parents gave to me and turning them into opportunities they may not even be aware of. Seeing my family’s story reflected in other immigrant stories, especially in Minnesota where there are so many other refugees, has really made me want to explore more.
And now you’re helping organize the Council’s first Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) Employee Resource Group. Why is that important to you?
For some people, the BIPOC umbrella seems straightforward, and for others it can take a while to feel like they can enter that arena, especially if they fall into the latter category that can be more ambiguous. There are certainly conversations that can be prioritized within the BIPOC setting but an underlying purpose is to help people make connections and see how others’ experiences resonate with their own. We want to have conversations that spark inspiration or get people thinking in new ways. The less we silo ourselves the better. And then I think a part of this is also to serve as a resource to everybody, to share that knowledge we’re building with the people we work with and the people we serve.
Learn more about new BIPOC Employee Resource Group
All employees are invited to learn more about a new Employee Resource Group (ERG) that will serve as a resource for those interested in supporting and networking with staff who identify as Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC).
Virtual kick-off meetings will be held at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 18, and at noon on Wednesday, Jan. 19. For more information, contact Victoria Dan.
The BIPOC ERG is in the process of being recognized by the Council; once that occurs, staff will be able to commit paid time to attending group meetings and other group-related activities.
Add the January 18 meeting to your calendar
Add the January 19 meeting to your calendar
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The Equity & Inclusion Team is welcoming several new members this month. Team members meet regularly to discuss ways to foster a more inclusive workplace and celebrate diversity. The new members are:
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Anthony Moore, operator, Ruter
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Ed Zapata, maintenance admin, Heywood
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German Gonzalez, operator, Nicollet
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Gabe Hafeman, data request liaison
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Kathryn Lehinger, Market Development Specialist
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Sgt. Kadra Mohammed
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Ahmed Dualeh, police officer
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Hela Maurer, police officer
Learn more about Disability ERG: Employees who want to help build a more inclusive workplace for those with apparent and/or non-apparent disabilities are invited to learn more about a new Employee Resource Group that is being formed. A kick-off meeting where a draft charter will be discussed will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 19. To be recognized as an ERG, the group's charter must be approved by the Council. For more information about next week's meeting, contact Sarah Berres.
Managers' Meeting: This week's Managers' Meeting included presentations on customers' top concerns and updates on the arterial BRT program and transit equity definition. All employees are invited to watch the meeting here.
Federal trial: Three former Minneapolis police officers charged in connection with George Floyd's murder are scheduled to go on trial beginning Thursday, Jan. 20, at the federal courthouse in St Paul. Roads around the courthouse will be closed beginning next week.
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