Minister Twyford's announcement this morning ofreform of the Public Transport Operating Model (PTOM) will be a timely fix forbad legislation that has cost jobs and pay for drivers and left publictransport systems broken says New Zealand Council of Trade Unions PresidentRichard Wagstaff.
PTOM was introduced in 2013 with the intentionof increasing private sector competition in public transport – a move that hasseen competitive tendering drive down wages and conditions across the sector.
Wagstaff says PTOM has never worked. "Thisoperating model has been a fiasco since day one. Change can't come soon enough.
"PTOM has left public transport systemsunderfunded and fractured, it's cost people in the industry their jobs anddriven down pay and conditions for many of those who have stayed. It holds abig share of the blame for the failures in public transport we've seen in thelast few years.
"Let's hope we can get on with rebuildingour public transport system so it works for everyone, especially the peoplethat work in it and who have faced so much uncertainty over the past fewyears."
