Passenger Trains > BART Employee time theft

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Investigators say three BART workers made a habit of showing up to work, clocking in and going right back home.

BART's inspector general has put out a new report that says these employees were getting paid their regular salary and overtime.

In one instance, a technician for the system's automatic fare collection system clocked in and didn't work the shift, for a total of 106 hours over 18 days last year.

That earned him more than $9,000 in falsely billed wages and benefits while not actually working.

He retired after investigators got BART police involved and is now facing criminal charges.

BART management is handling the other two.

https://abc7news.com/bart-investigation-employee-time-theft-transit-workers-leaving-work/14553517/

Only three??!!

This has a "tip of the iceberg" feel to it.

In 1970, I worked on a first trick yard crew in Oneonta, NY, for the D&H.

The daily routine was for the engineer to sign in for the first trick and also sign his fireman at 0700. The fireman actually showed up at 1100, at which time, the engineer went home. At 1500, the fireman signed himself and his (long gone) engineer off duty at 1500. Both fireman and engineer got paid for an eight-hour trick while actually working only four hours.

This had been going on for years.

Art House

Sounds like a basic failure of management.  If you not are inspecting, at least on an occasional basis, you get what you deserve.

That was one of the David Gunn NYC Transit Authority discoveries. He would show up at the car shops on Sunday evening, or 4 am on a Thursday and the place would be half empty. Guys sleeping in their cars, supervisors nowhere to be seen, etc.

After a come to  Jesus meeting with the union leadership, productivity soared, productivity bonuses soared, and more work was done with many fewer people.
 

Meanwhile billionaires don't pay any tax.

Okay then.

And BART never seems to believe that fare evasion, or theft such as this, occurs on its system.  They literally don't believe it, until the press or someone else puts it right in front of their face.

Then BART whines and pleads for more tax dollars to support this "critical system."

I look forward to voting on the MTC's proposed tax to support BART.  And many others I talk to are also eager to make cast their vote.  We're all FED UP.

...and corporations steal wages from employees by the millions of dollars. Fix this first.

Michael

coach Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> And BART never seems to believe that fare evasion,
> or theft such as this, occurs on its system.
>  They literally don't believe it, until the press
> or someone else puts it right in front of their
> face.
>
If this is true, then why is BART spending $90 million to replace all 700 existing fare gates with new fare gates designed to greatly reduce/eliminate fare evasion?

Because AFTER the press ran reports of HUGE fare evasion (that BART had been denying), and the MTC became aware of it (they help fund BART), they imposed lots of pressure on BART to change out their faregates in order to keep receiving funding.  It was that simple.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sounds like a basic failure of management.  If
> you not are inspecting, at least on an occasional
> basis, you get what you deserve.
>
> That was one of the David Gunn NYC Transit
> Authority discoveries. He would show up at the car
> shops on Sunday evening, or 4 am on a Thursday and
> the place would be half empty. Guys sleeping in
> their cars, supervisors nowhere to be seen, etc.
>
> After a come to  Jesus meeting with the union
> leadership, productivity soared, productivity
> bonuses soared, and more work was done with many
> fewer people.
>  

You get what you deserve? Wow...

Posted from Android

37176 Wrote:
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> Meanwhile billionaires don't pay any tax.
>
> Okay then.

Yes they do. Unless their company lost money or they have a lot of carry over losses.

Posted from Android

emd_mrs1 Wrote:
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> ...and corporations steal wages from employees by
> the millions of dollars. Fix this first.
>
> Michael

How do they steal wages from Employees? Were they not paid the agreed to wage?

Posted from Android

goduckies Wrote:
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> How do they steal wages from Employees? Were they
> not paid the agreed to wage?

At least in the recent past, managers at other organizations (non-railroad) will clock out "on behalf" of their employees to cover up overtime and hours of work violations. Don't make yourself naive by trying to argue with political insinuation.

But overall, the "stealing wages from employees" narrative is usually reactive finger pointing. There's no "sides" to this issue here. All sides are circling the drain into distrust, anger, and eventual societal collapse... so keep arguing! :-)

emd_mrs1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...and corporations steal wages from employees by
> the millions of dollars. Fix this first.
>
> Michael

So, are you saying, that until one unrelated problem is fixed, people should not be prosecuted for theft?

In these days of facial and fingerprint recognition technology, it should be relatively simple to put systems in place that know exactly WHO is clocking in and out.  For large concerns such as a railroad, it should be reasonably affordable as well.

Streamliner Wrote:
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> In these days of facial and fingerprint
> recognition technology, it should be relatively
> simple to put systems in place that know exactly
> WHO is clocking in and out.  For large concerns
> such as a railroad, it should be reasonably
> affordable as well.

A) I am guessing the union would protest such usage under very real privacy concerns.
B) Using facial recoginition and/or fingerprint for time clock purposes is very expensive and introduces significant security and privacy concerns.

longliveSP Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Streamliner Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > In these days of facial and fingerprint
> > recognition technology, it should be relatively
> > simple to put systems in place that know
> exactly
> > WHO is clocking in and out.  For large
> concerns
> > such as a railroad, it should be reasonably
> > affordable as well.
>
> A) I am guessing the union would protest such
> usage under very real privacy concerns.
> B) Using facial recoginition and/or fingerprint
> for time clock purposes is very expensive and
> introduces significant security and privacy
> concernbouts.
Or C you have no idea about how to solve the problem.
Union would be very careful about that. Hanford Nuk in Richland WA had time card problems blow up big time not that many years back Union never said a thing. Got corrected and cost some people jobs.

emd_mrs1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...and corporations steal wages from employees by
> the millions of dollars. Fix this first.
>
> Michael

So much this.

longliveSP Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> emd_mrs1 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...and corporations steal wages from employees
> by
> > the millions of dollars. Fix this first.
> >
> > Michael
>
> So, are you saying, that until one unrelated
> problem is fixed, people should not be prosecuted
> for theft?

The problems are definitely related. If employees weren't stolen from, they in turn may not feel the need to (or be pressed to) steal.

But yes, you are correct. The law should be attacking both with the same vigor.

portlander Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> emd_mrs1 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...and corporations steal wages from employees
> by
> > the millions of dollars. Fix this first.
> >
> > Michael
>
> So much this.

A union and company agree on a contract, pay structure, etc. The members ratify it and work under its terms.

Where's the theft?

Posted from Android