Calgary Transit Employee Reviews

I am currently working at transit and have been for the past 15 years. I am currently a transit operator. I have did work in dispatch for a couple years. Dispatch was a great job to have, but left became The main issue I find with Calgary Transit is actually the operators. The high majority of operators are excellent. They care about their job and provide great service for the customers. The problem is there are a lot of operators that take advantage of Transit’s policies on sickness and their lack of discipline towards operators that break the rules. There is a large group of operators that seem to always go sick. They are allowed up to 5 days of sick leave without a doctors note. So some will go sick, and then come back for a few days. Then go sick again. This happens frequently. It really ruins this for the operators who are actually sick. The other issue is there are no repercussions for operators who are late or for those that just don’t show up for work. They get a report on their file, but nothing really happens to them. Maybe get spoken to by a supervisor, but nothing else. It’s really frustrating for the operators who actually do care and want to do a good job. I also find upper management out of touch with the issues that the operators face every day and very little seems to be done about it.

Pros

Helping customers get around the city

Cons

The amount of complaining some operators do

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Great place for a part time weekend job.

Community Shuttle Bus Driver (Former Employee) - Spring Garden - 16 April 2023

Calgary Transit gives you the best training to start your career. The management is excellent and you get support from your performance partner when needed. The job can be challenging at times but you feel you have really made a difference y when you help get them to their destinations safely and made them smile. Excellent place to work!

Pros

Lots of extra work if you want it.

Cons

Bad weather, driving on roads first thing after a heavy snow and the roads have not been cleared yet.

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Insights into Calgary Transit

Based on 12 survey responses

What people like

General feeling of work happiness
Clear sense of purpose
Fair pay for job

Great place

Transit Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary - 26 March 2023

Lots of variety when on spare board. Different shifts, early, late, middle, split and you also get one piece early or late. A multicultural place to work.

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Bad Bad dispatch department

Transit Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 5 January 2023

Salary is good , benefits are ok but dispatch department and dispatchers will make sure your days is screwed ip big time. 12 to 13 hrs day but only 6-6.5 hrs work pay. In between 6- 6.5 hrs work you can have 1 to 5 hrs break . You argue with dispatch then your day can be split into three different shifts. When you are lower in seniority you get 8-9 hrs work when your seniority goes up it’s opposite you will start getting less hrs with split shifts which doesn’t make any sense. Work life balance = 0

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Excellent place to work

Service Lane Foreman (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 7 September 2022

I worked for Calgary Transit for 25 years. Loved my job with them. Nice place to work and paid well. Lots of movement to go up the latter to success.

Pros

Lunch time paid break

Cons

Very busy

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Great Place to work

Transit Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 3 August 2022

Calgary Transit is a good place to work, the pay and benefits are good but work life balance you have to create with other drivers as they dont care about your family life

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Vehicles poorly maintained

Transit Operator (Current Employee) - Service design - 20 June 2022

Vehicles often poorly maintained often breakdown more time off more work life balance better maintained vehicles to operate more time for schedules more break times

Pros

Benefits offered

Cons

Long hours unreliable equipment such as buses and trains

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Modern, clean work space with a great gym.

Call Center Representative (Current Employee) - Calgary, AB - 10 February 2022

I love my work site! It's accommodating, nice management. Busy and professional but relaxed at the same time.

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Great opportunity to help people

OPERATOR (Current Employee) - Calgary, AB - 2 December 2021

While the task may be safely driving people to their destinations, you also have many opportunities to help people and listen to their great stories! You interact with people from all walks of life. Every day has its exciting challenges and rewards.

Pros

Flexible schedule with seniority.

Cons

Work life balance is difficult to achieve when you first start the job.

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Hard work during winter months

Responisble as a lead hand for supervision (Former Employee) - City wide. - 24 November 2021

Since being laid off with information that our jobs were contracted out to our bosses cousin.I refrain from any further comment.Our union did nothing to try to negotiate saving our jobs .As a matter of fact they were away at a convention when City council voted to privatize our Deptment leaving over 100 workers and their families with very little hope.Anyone who transferred to another sector of Calgary Transit was sent back to our group to be laid off.All in all a very stressful environment with a pretty terrible experience after working hard forc10 years.

Pros

Good salary

Cons

Bad union rep and management. Back room deals entirely illegal.

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Toxic work environment

Autobody Technician (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 8 June 2021

Horrible work environment, every employee is more concerned with throwing each other under the bus to save their own skin. Management only concern with over spending the budget (taxpayers money) to justify there existence. Could wait to be done with that job my skills and talents were waisting away. The union did nothing for there members and even demanded every member vote for a particular party in the provincial election. Pay was good, hours as well but not worth the trade off for the frustration and misery of having to look over your shoulder all the time and watching the clock all day.

Pros

Work hours

Cons

Work environment

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Great people, bad work-life balance

Cutomer Service Representative (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 23 March 2021

I worked at CT for a little over two years and have many good things to say. The supervisors were friendly, compassionate and good hearted people. The staff were even better - a great group of people from all walks of life. Working in Customer Service was fun, but really unchallenging and boring, which I didn't love. Moving into the security side of things, it got interesting but very high stress. Most on call customer service reps were pushed into the security side with little understanding of the things you end up seeing. This is fine for people who handle stressful situations well. I, unfortunately, am not one of those people. The good new is they do provide stellar peer support, so if that's your jam, you'll love working here. Most staff are hired on as on-call, so you need to be available on weekends. If they like you, you get a lot of hours (and I did), so the money is great. Sadly, no benefits or other perks beyond the great (and I mean great) hourly wage.

Pros

Staff

Cons

Night shift, no benefits, no weekends

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Fun to work if you are people's person.

Transit Operator (Current Employee) - Calgary, AB - 4 November 2020

Soo far good experience, pay and benefits are good. Lots of room for advancement in company. At the beginning you get long hour shifts mostly split shifts.

Pros

Enjoy out door and people

Cons

Long hours with split work

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Calgary Transit is Toxic

Transit Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 10 August 2020

The ONLY good things about working for Calgary Transit is the Salary, Benefits and Pension if you drive Train or BigBus. If you drive Shuttle then its Benefits and maybe pension. Management is aloof and absent, they have no idea of the reality on the ground. Control and Dispatch treat you like sh1t and the majority of your fellow drivers will steal the food off your plate while espousing the "bother and sisterhood" of your fellow employees. Toxic environment. No sign of the workplace respect and policies Transit supposedly promotes...

Pros

Benefits, Pension

Cons

Everything else

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Shuttle Bus drivers get treated unfairly

Community Shuttle Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 29 June 2020

I think driving the big busses at Calgary Transit would be a good job eventually, after taking years to learn the routes and waiting to gain seniority to be able to pick good routes. However, the shuttle bus drivers have the exact same training, drivers license, and skills as the big bus drivers but they get paid at least $14 less per hour. Also, the shuttle bus drivers do not get paid for travel time in between routes. It is a rip off and I felt like we were being treated unfairly during my employment there and the union was doing nothing about it.

Pros

Good municiple health benefits. Great co-workers and most of the customers are great.

Cons

Unfair pay for shuttle, lots of split shifts, takes years to gain seniority

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Quick and not stressful

Preventative Maintenance Person (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 15 June 2020

Sat down with 1 shop foreman, and 1 Shop Coordinator for about 15 mins. Just asked about previous work experience, where I want to be in 5 years, and how I could be an asset. Was over qualified for the job, but got it.

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I enjoyed working for Transit; but for the politics i would still be there.

Outside Maintenance (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 14 June 2020

Working outside maintenance overnight was a great job for me- someone with sleep issues. It wasn't for everyone, especially those who couldn't work independently or work nights. For those who could however, the benefits were many. Every shift was different from the previous ones, and the opportunities to learn new skills abounded. .

Pros

Working with a crew, working independently. Knowing that your efforts were having an immediate impact on people

Cons

Discovering that city politics holds your future, through contracting out, etc.

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Stress free work environment

OPERATOR & OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 15 March 2020

Pro-active environment organised for a stress free work atmosphere and growth opportunities. Transparent interaction and open leadership support and guidance.

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As long as u keep your nose clean and dont speak your mind and dont make any mistakes u should be fine but thats an iffy

bus operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 3 March 2020

Working for ct is ok for about 1 a yr after u pass your probation after that the pressure and stress start mounting especially from management &supers

Pros

Passengers for most part r nice to chat with and driving city for the most part is relaxing and fun

Cons

Stressful atmosphere, management treat is bad, supervisors dont listen, health suffers mentally and physically

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Stressful environment

Transit Operator (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 30 January 2020

Subject to union culture, driver assaults, mundane work and unpleasant conditions. Twelve hour split shifts, very early starts, winter driving hazards and aggress druvers in traffic.

Pros

Excellent pay and benefits

Cons

Long hours

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You’re just a number

Service lane Attendant (Former Employee) - Calgary, AB - 16 January 2020

They give you a job they move you around they make you worry about your security at your job and then they let you go with only a months worth of severance that’s what I went through and I wouldn’t recommend this job to anyone

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