Politicians criticize toll collection job elimination
Republicans and Democrats on two state Senate committees said Monday they will try to persuade the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to reverse its decision to lay off 500 workers involved in toll collection this week.
Using terms like “astounding,” “extremely concerning” and “unconscionable,” members of the Transportation and Labor and Industry committees sharply criticized the agency during a joint hearing for announcing the layoffs two weeks after signing a new contract with the union that represents the toll collectors, as well as maintenance workers and office staff. Commission officials admitted the idea of laying off toll workers had been discussed during a private executive session before a May 19 public meeting where the new contract with the Teamsters was approved.
Two weeks later, the board approved continuing permanently the cashless toll system put in place in March to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus, eliminating 500 jobs of workers who collect tolls and office workers who count the money. Those jobs were supposed to be eliminated at the end of 2021 as the turnpike switches to cashless tolling, but the agency blamed financial losses during the COVID-19 pandemic and health concerns for making the change now.
Senators vowed to see whether federal stimulus money or other state funds could be found to help pay the workers through next year, which would cost upward of $100 million.
Committee members seemed particularly upset the turnpike broke a 5-year-old commitment to
keep the jobs through next year, and neither they nor the workers were consulted or made aware of the pending layoffs before they were announced June 2, even though Gov. Tom Wolf had been notified.
“When is a promise really a promise?” asked Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Luzerne County. She and others noted turnpike CEO Mark Compton had told union leaders in writing last fall and verbally after the pandemic started in March the jobs would be maintained through next year.
Mr. Compton said he regretted breaking his word to Teamsters officials and called the recommendation one of the toughest he has made at the agency. He said financial losses of more than $100 million between March and May due to fewer drivers on the toll road and continuing social distancing requirements made switching now the turnpike’s best option.
“I didn’t see this coming,” Mr. Compton said. “I’m trying to keep the organization afloat. We had to make some tough decisions.”
Commission member William Lieberman, a former chairman, said the commission was aware of the commitment to maintain the jobs through next year. He said he would “categorically deny” any relationship between the new union contract vote and the layoff decision.
“This pandemic overwhelmed us, and no one is happy about it,” Mr. Lieberman said, adding the board “agonized” over the decision.
Sen. Lindsey Williams, DWest View, and others called the pandemic “a weak argument” for the turnpike to move ahead its plan to eliminate jobs more than a year earlier than expected and said the agency could have worked out concerns about social distancing if it had contacted the union.
“You didn’t give a [expletive] about these employees,” Ms. Williams said.
Mr. Compton conceded the fact the agency was “transitioning” away from toll collectors made it easier to move the decision ahead, especially because the agency was concerned about maintaining social distancing between motorists and collectors.
“We have a [cashless tolling] mechanism in place to keep them out of harm’s way,” he said.
The agency will continue to offer workers $5,000 a year in tuition reimbursement through next year, allow them to fill other state jobs they qualify for, increase the maximum severance from $14,000 to about $25,000 and provide lifetime health insurance for anyone who would have qualified if they had stayed through 2021.
The agency also has taken other financial steps, such as freezing hiring, cutting its capital budget by $147 million this year (25%) and offering early retirement to managers, about 30 of whom have accepted so far.
Mr. Compton and Chief Operating Officer Craig Shuey said consultants have told the turnpike it could take four years for traffic to return to pre-pandemic levels. Mr. Shuey said the agency could lose $400 million in revenue in the fiscal year that began June 1.
“We’re not going to be out of the hole any time soon” he said.
Mr. Lieberman said he believes that will mean continuing toll increases at the agency, perhaps even higher than the 6% increase that had been projected the next two years before gradually dropping to 3% by 2028.
“There’s going to be an increase in tolls. It’s going to be painful,” he said.
Sen. James Brewster, DMcKeesport, said he would ask members of both committees to sign a letter to Mr. Wolf and the turnpike commission asking them to reconsider the layoffs.
“This is just a bad decision at one of the worst times you could have picked,” Mr. Brewster said, referring to high unemployment rates as a result of the pandemic.
Union leaders also testified they were blindsided by the layoff decision and would have discussed other options if given the opportunity. The union said it will file an unfair labor practice charge against the turnpike.
“This was nothing more than a premeditated hit,” said William Hamilton, a Teamsters vice president who represents workers on the eastern side of the state. “I firmly believe this is not an irreversible decision.”