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XPost: talk.politics.guns, sac.politics

https://abc7.com/la-metro-responds-to-possible-sick-out-by-drivers- following-recent-assaults/14760678/

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Metro buses on 19 different lines throughout Los
Angeles were delayed Friday as hundreds of bus drivers called out sick
over safety concerns following several recent assaults on drivers.

The lines affected include Lines 2, 4, 18, 20, 40, 45, 53, 66, 70, 108,
110, 111, 206 and 720, Metro said on the social media platform X.

Metro was deploying its staff to mitigate the impact of this sudden
staffing shortage.

In a statement, Metro also said bus drivers are "the lifeblood" of the organization and urged them to reconsider calling in sick.

"Bus operators are the face of Metro to more than 80% of Metro riders.
They are the lifeblood of the Metro organization. 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. 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 statement said.

"However, transit riders throughout Los Angeles County depend on the Metro
Bus and Rail network every day to reach critical destinations including
work, school, and medical facilities, and to care for their friends and
family members. 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 statement continued. "Transit operators who intentionally
plan to call in sick put our customers at risk. Further, it is a violation
of Metro's Collective Bargaining Agreement, so we hope they will
reconsider."

"I took my own choice, to call out and come out here and that's my own
personal choice," said Metro bus driver Carlos Carballo.

Carballo is one of the 360 L.A. Metro bus drivers who aren't behind the
wheel Friday, instead using a sick day in the hopes it draws attention to
their safety concerns.

"They have to see the issues, like people bringing weapons on board," he
said.

The last few months have been dangerous and violent for Metro bus drivers
and passengers.

In March, a man hijacked a Metro bus with a BB gun, only to crash that bus
into the front of the Ritz-Carlton hotel.

In April, a Metro bus driver was punched and stabbed by a passenger, and
in a separate incident a passenger was stabbed and killed leaving a Metro
train in Studio City.

Metro riders say they often take safety into their own hands.

Just last week, the Metro Board approved new, larger plexiglass barriers
to protect drivers, but the bus operator's union doesn't think it's
enough.

They've asked for armed security guards, and stiffer sentences for those
who attack Metro drivers.

The coordinated sick calls caused an intentional short-term inconvenience
in the hopes it'll lead to long term change.


--
We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that
stupid people won't be offended.

Durham Report: The FBI has an integrity problem. It has none.

No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.
Officially made Nancy Pelosi a two-time impeachment loser.

Thank you for cleaning up the disaster of the 2008-2017 Obama / Biden
fiasco, President Trump.

Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.

President Trump boosted the economy, reduced illegal invasions, appointed dozens of judges and three SCOTUS justices.

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