Metro Warns Of Long Delays Citing Unusual Number Of Sick Call-Outs From Drivers

L.A. Metro riders experienced significant delays on more than 25 bus lines Friday as the agency dealt with staffing shortages from a possible “sickout” by drivers protesting the recent violence on the transit system.

L.A. Metro confirmed that more staff called out sick than usual. The agency also said on social media it's deploying as many people as possible to try and make up for the missed service on the most affected routes.

“We appeal to our operators to reconsider the impact their plan to call in sick will have on some of the most vulnerable people in the county,” the agency said in a statement.

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About the delays

The bus delays multiplied as Friday wore on, jumping from six lines shortly after 5 a.m. to nearly 30 by around 2:30 p.m.

The routes stretch across the transit system, including Lincoln Heights, Playa Del Rey, and Hollywood.

A Reddit user posted early Friday that their bus operator had warned regular riders that a lot of staff wouldn’t be showing up to work because of “the lack of concern for their safety” from L.A. Metro.

The user wrote that they didn’t believe it until four buses didn’t arrive and they ended up taking an Uber.

Metro responds

The transit agency said in a statement that bus operators are the “lifeblood” of Metro, and those who intentionally plan to call in sick put customers at risk.

“We understand their and their families’ fear in the face of the senseless assaults some have experienced primarily resulting from the twin crises of untreated mental illness and drug addiction,” L.A. Metro said in a statement. “We share their frustration and have expedited the installation of barriers to keep them safe, as well as the re-deployment of safety and security personnel on board buses to deter assaults. At the same time, we are working on longer term plans, which include the addition of even more dedicated transit security bus riding teams.”

The transit agency added that a sickout is a violation of their collective bargaining agreement.

SMART-TD, the union representing thousands of bus operators and mechanics, did not immediately respond to LAist’s request for comment.

Recent violence

Metro reports that assaults on operators have nearly doubled since 2019 — from 92 to 160 assaults last year.

Just last month, a bus driver was stabbed in Willowbrook, a woman was killed at the Universal City/Studio City station, and one person was injured after an argument led to a stabbing outside a Metro bus in University Park.

The agency is planning on installing new shatter-proof, tempered glass barriers on buses to protect drivers, starting with those that have experienced the most operator assaults within the past year.

Kent Wong, a labor attorney with the UCLA Labor Center, told LAist there’s been a lot of violence on the public transportation system, which is a grave concern for both riders and the workers whose lives and safety are on the line.

“We just celebrated last week, Worker Memorial Day, and this is a holiday each year that commemorates workers who have either been killed or injured on the job,” he said. “So with regard to worker dissatisfaction, if workers are subjected to unsafe or dangerous work conditions, that has, in many instances, prompted collective action by the workers on the job.”

Wong said there’s been a remarkable string of strikes over the past few years, from Los Angeles Unified School District to Hollywood, as more people organize.

“The rise in labor activism and strikes in the summer of 2023 by and large resulted in substantial increases in wages and improvements in working conditions, and as a consequence, this will inspire other workers to organize, to form and join unions, but also to engage in collective action, including strikes,” he said.