{"id":496480,"date":"2010-03-31T20:16:00","date_gmt":"2010-04-01T00:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d8341c630a53ef0131100472e7970c"},"modified":"2010-04-01T03:22:22","modified_gmt":"2010-04-01T07:22:22","slug":"metrolink-train-crews-threaten-boycott-over-personality-test-requirement-updated","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/496480","title":{"rendered":"Metrolink train crews threaten boycott over personality test requirement [Updated]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Blog-chatsworth-metrolink-francine-orr\"<\/img><\/a>
<\/br>Engineers and conductors on Southern California\u2019s commuter rail service are threatening a boycott of new personality profiling tests required as a result of the 2008 Chatsworth disaster. <\/p>\n

The dispute sets up a potentially major labor-management clash just as the five-county Metrolink system is shifting to a new contractor to provide crews for trains that have nearly 1 million boardings a month.<\/p>\n

[Updated at 8:01 p.m.<\/strong> An earlier version of this post said there were nearly 1 million boardings a year.]<\/p>\n

The screening tests, frequently used by corporate managers to gauge the suitability of job applicants, are already required by Amtrak, the incoming operating contractor, when it hires engineers and conductors.
<\/br><\/p>\n

But two powerful railroad unions are strongly objecting to a Metrolink-Amtrak agreement finalized last week. It requires experienced crew members on the regional rail service to take and pass the tests to continue working on the system. Some have worked on Metrolink trains for years. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not going to be taking these tests,\u201d said Tim Smith, California legislative chairman of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. \u201cThat\u2019s it. We\u2019ll see where it ends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all going to stand together,\u201d said Ray Garcia of the United Transportation Union, which represents the conductors.<\/p>\n

Union leaders say that, unless the dispute is resolved, Amtrak may not be able to field qualified train crews when it takes over operations this summer. Amtrak is set to assume operation of the 500-mile Metrolink system July 1. Connex Railroad, the current operator, opted not to pursue a contract extension when it\u2019s relationship with Metrolink soured after the Chatsworth crash, which killed 25 and injured 135<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Metrolink board members say safety must come first, but they are likely to revisit the testing issue to ensure it is fair to the approximately 130 engineers and conductors now working on their trains.
<\/br><\/p>\n

The push for psychological screening was prompted by findings that a Metrolink engineer who repeatedly violated safety rules caused the Chatsworth catastrophe. Engineer Robert M. Sanchez, who died in the crash, had sent and received hundreds of text messages while operating trains, including seconds before he ran a red light and hit a freight train head-on, federal investigators concluded<\/a>. In addition, evidence showed Sanchez sneaked young rail fans onto locomotives and apparently let at least one sit at the train controls. Such conduct was wildly irresponsible, Metrolink officials say, and occurred even though the veteran engineer had received good evaluations. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t want someone out there who\u2019s having whatever psychological issues they are having that could jeopardize passengers,\u201d said Metrolink board Chairman Keith Millhouse. But he added, \u201cWe are going to have to look at this and see if some kind of proper balance can be struck.\u201d <\/p>\n

Union leaders say the tests are not valid or relevant measures of a trained and experienced employee\u2019s ability to safely operate trains. They say they do not object to testing of potential hires who are not union members. But forcing existing train crews to pass the tests could arbitrarily cost good workers their jobs, they say.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s strictly a witch hunt,\u201d said Smith of the engineers union. <\/p>\n

Also, longtime Amtrak employees who\u2019ve never taken the personality tests would be allowed to transfer to Metrolink under the new contract, said conductors\u2019 representative Garcia. \u201cThis is something that\u2019s never, ever been required\u201d of seasoned workers moving between operating contractors on railroad\u2019s like Metrolink, he said.<\/p>\n

At issue are tests Amtrak has used for several years to screen job applicants. A \u201cpersonality inventory\u201d for engineers is designed to reveal an applicant\u2019s \u201cwork tendencies, habits and personality traits,\u201d according to an Amtrak statement. It specifically seeks out what are labeled \u201cfocused introverts\u201d who are good at repetitive tasks and don\u2019t allow themselves to become distracted by such things as cellphones while operating a train, according to descriptions provided by the rail company. The assessment was developed with union assistance and consultants and has been used since 2002, according to Amtrak.<\/p>\n

Conductor candidates take two such tests: One is designed to gauge an applicant\u2019s ability to interact with customers and deal with conflicts and emergencies. The other seeks to measure a person\u2019s ethics and attitudes toward theft, drug use and other workplace concerns.<\/p>\n

Amtrak declined to provide failure rates for the tests, but Garcia said about 20% of conductor applicants fail the ethics and attitude test. <\/p>\n

The written tests are part of an ongoing effort to overhaul Metrolink\u2019s safety culture, agency officials say. Another initiative, last year\u2019s installation of video surveillance cameras<\/a> in train control cabs, has already sparked a legal battle with the engineers union.<\/p>\n

Like the cameras, personality testing of train crews \u2014 and particularly locomotive engineers \u2014 is prudent because employees are responsible for hundreds of lives, said agency board member Richard Katz. \u201cThis is one more tool to help evaluate how an engineer might operate under stress.\u201d <\/p>\n

USC professor Robert Gore, a personality testing expert, said such screening can be valuable but might not flag an employee like engineer Sanchez. \u201cThese tests are far from perfect,\u201d he said, adding that they should be used with great caution in screening existing workers who have not demonstrated problems.
<\/br><\/p>\n

Katz said he thinks the test results should be part of assessing existing workers but not necessarily a disqualifying factor. But he acknowledged that under the current contract language, Metrolink crew members \u201crun the risk of not being employed\u201d if they don\u2019t agree to take the tests.<\/p>\n

— Rich Connell<\/p>\n

Photo: Firefighters and others continue rescue efforts after a Metrolink commuter train collides with a freight train in Chatsworth on Sept. 12, 2008. Credit: Francine Orr \/ Los Angeles Times <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Engineers and conductors on Southern California\u2019s commuter rail service are threatening a boycott of new personality profiling tests required as a result of the 2008 Chatsworth disaster. The dispute sets up a potentially major labor-management clash just as the five-county Metrolink system is shifting to a new contractor to provide crews for trains that have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4678,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-496480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4678"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=496480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496480\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=496480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=496480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=496480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}