THE MBTA IS LAYING OFF workers to help close an $80 million operating deficit.
T officials said the layoffs are part of a larger effort to streamline operations by eliminating 300 corporate and administrative positions. The MBTA’s annual report, released on Dec. 15, said 174 positions had been eliminated through voluntary buyouts and retirements, generating $14 million in savings. The report indicated another 126 positions would need to be eliminated by the end of the fiscal year at the end of June.
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About Bruce Mohl
Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.
About Bruce Mohl
Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.
One source said 25 people were laid off on Thursday, including many from the T’s call center and its marketing and customer service operations. The T has been exploring outsourcing its call center operations.
The layoffs affect nonunion workers as well members of Local 453 of the Office and Professional Employees International Union and the T Executives Association. Officials said those workers with bumping rights will be offered other positions, including bus operator jobs, where turnover creates a lot of vacancies.
MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said the agency has been upfront about the need for staff reductions to deal with the $80 million operating deficit. “No new news here,” he said in an emailed statement.
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