Will-Bx-718

11 minutes ago, nycal30 said:

   Thank you for the response. I’m hoping before long we all get back to normal. Any news from MTA would be welcoming news. Even a “don’t worry we haven’t forgotten you”  message from them.  Of course as always the safety of all matters the most.

      One thing that is worrying me is that last week I received a letter from NYCERS saying that the application was denied. Reason being that I was not in the “city system on the date of the application.”  I’m hoping that is just a technicality since I haven’t officially started training/working for the MTA NYCT yet. The day of the application was on the day that I was hired.

Don’t even worry about that letter from NYCERS. It’s just a standard letter sent out when you haven’t been in a working status for more then 60 days. I also got one when I was out sick long term last year. Whenever you start working another application will be sent in by TA, and your pension will start. As far as any news on hiring nothing has changed from my previous posts. At this point nothing is open at 180 Livingston street, except for the medical assessment clinic. 

On 5/15/2020 at 10:00 PM, nycal30 said:

Has anyone heard any news about anything relating to training classes. Still anxiously waiting for the postponed Station Agent training class to start. I know nothing has really changed in respect to the reopening of New York City. Pretty much all social distance guidelines remain the same. I'm just wondering how the MTA will determine when to finally restart training? Will they await the somewhat relaxing of social distancing guidelines? Understandingly they are taking extra precaution in keeping everyone safe. Just hoping to hear any bit of news. Of course, as always, keep safe everyone.

I understand your anxiousness, but nothing has changed in regards to hiring any wine. That memo I posted in April still stands, no new hires and no new classes. They aren’t even processing promotions at this time either. Also all classes have Ben cancelled until further notice. And as far as reopening no one here could answer that question, as we haven’t been informed of this. The MTA is a state operated agency and thus gets all its orders from the office of the governor. So whenever they do open back up it’ll be under that offices timeline and guidance. I know this sucks and is probably the last thing you want to hear. But if I had to give it a ball park figure I’d say not until after the summer will they start to rehire, maybe even longer it they don’t get the government bailout they’re seeking. 

6 hours ago, Maican90 said:

Wowwww, thanks for the insight to be honest I’m definitely in no rush to be out there, and I’ve also been keeping an eye on the number of MTA workers who have fell victim to this outbreak, it’s very sad. Hope everyone is cautious and do their best to keep safe.

Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but they sent out a memo stating they’ve put an Absolute Block on any hiring or promotions of any sort, until further notice. I don’t know how that will affect you since you were sworn in, which technically makes you an employee already. But it could be much longer than a while judging by the tone of the bulletin.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/oysl1gwp7cqw7k7/IMG_3073.jpg?dl=0

1 minute ago, Maican90 said:

All we can do is wait and see how everything unfolds, I know most service has been running on a limited/reduced  schedule, are booths still open ?? Are station agents working their usual hours and days? Just curious how you guys have been affected by this pandemic, what has changed?

Barely! Lots of clerks have had to close their booths down because they didn’t have a relief and were about to go into triples. Some booths have just been straight up closed due to no coverage. And lots of office workers are working from home

32 minutes ago, Agentant207 said:

A hiring freeze was put in place as of April 21, 2020.

1 hour ago, nycal30 said:

I got sworn in on February 21 for the March 30th class. Of course due to the Covid-19 pandemic our class start date was pushed back to April 13 and then that class was postponed till further notice. I’m hoping to soon begin training for the Station Agent position. But of course the safety of everyone involved is above all most important. Let’s all be positive and above all stay safe.

Yeah right now ain’t nobody being hired for anything. There’s no one barely working at 130 Livingston or anyone at 180 Livingston. Plus there’s no way to practice social distancing up in that waiting area. Once the world opens back up hiring will resume. But I’m not gonna sugar coat it for you, it may be months before that will happen. Right now honestly it’s too much craziness going on in the system as it is, this would be the complete wrong time to start down here. I’d advise to just stay patient and hope for a positive outcome of this pandemic. 

3 minutes ago, Skyegirl21 said:

Well my class was a group of 24 and they split us up into groups of 12 for the remainder of the classes. They told us they’re really trying not to cancel our classes. So I guess we’ll see . I’m hoping for the best . Tomorrow we have our observation day . 

Well if you guys are on observation day you’re almost done with class. All that’s left is two booth take over days, and your final exam. 

17 hours ago, Skyegirl21 said:

Yes , a bunch of my classmates selected shorts . I will look into contacting the uniform company when I receive the order 

If it hasn’t happened yet your classes may get postponed. TA doesn’t want more than 10 people in a given small space at any given time. I’m not sure how many people are in your class but I’m sure it’s at least 10 people plus the instructor(s). Right now at 130 Livingston it’s a virtual ghost town as all nonessential employees have been instructed to stay home and work remotely. 

13 hours ago, Crozay said:

I’m assuming the same but hoping not at the same time, obviously being selfish but I understand why this would be the case.

 

everyone stay safe.

Yeah there won’t be any hiring of any sorts for some time. All nonessential TA workers have been given two weeks off to work from home remotely. 

4 minutes ago, Skyegirl21 said:

Hmm ok , will they let me trade for pants then??  Wish they wouldn’t have let me select them.

 

thank you for being so informative 

You’ll have to contact the uniform company. I’m very surprised that let you choose shorts. Usually only items which are available for your title are allowed to be selected. Unless they’ve changed it allow agents to wear shorts. I haven’t been in a booth in 5 years, and honestly never seen an agent wearing shorts. 

Just now, Will-Bx-718 said:

You can wear boots or shoes while on duty. Either black or brown in color. Station Agent's aren’t issued safety boots at all. So you have to provide your own approved type of footwear.  

And also Station Agents aren’t issued shorts, so you aren’t allowed to wear your them. The only titles issued shorts are bus operators. And besides you wouldn’t want to wear shorts in those booths anyway. There’s many hazards you can encounter while in a booth. So you would t want your legs exposed. 

On 3/12/2020 at 4:44 PM, Skyegirl21 said:

So I’m currently in Transit School and they are very strict about wearing boots . Is that the only footwear we can wear for Station Agent ? No type of sneakers ? If so we have to wear shorts with boots ? 

You can wear boots or shoes while on duty. Either black or brown in color. Station Agent's aren’t issued safety boots at all. So you have to provide your own approved type of footwear.  

3 hours ago, Skyegirl21 said:

Are the first two days of orientation 8hrs ??

All days are 8 hours. You’ll be working from 0700-1500(8am to 3pm) on most days. Also learn military time(24 hours clock) if you’re not familiar with it, because transit only operates and fills out paperwork in a 24 hour clock format. 

4 hours ago, Skyegirl21 said:

Hi Will 

I have a few questions if you don’t mind me bothering .

What is done for the first two days of orientation before we head to transit school ? (Uniforms, metrocards) 

Is there a chance of getting a booth job in Staten Island being there is only 1 train ? 
 

Are there rules about hair color and such ? 

22 minutes ago, Agentant207 said:

Unfortunately no booths on the island, sirr is a separate division in the mta, you will have a choice of lower Manhattan or Bayridge Brooklyn as your home station. No rule on hair color, you can have whatever color you choose as far as I know. First day of orientation is hr stuff such as paper work, general rules, and you will receive you epic pass (metro card). Second day is at the union hall, filling out paperwork and getting info on the union. Uniform fittings are usually the second week of training. 

Yeah everyone he said honestly I couldn’t remember exactly what we did the first two days being as that was 15 years ago for me. But first two days will be very boring I can tell you.

I can mostly remember the format of the training course. First two weeks they train you the rules and procedures of TA, as well as the paperwork. But nowadays their isn’t much paperwork any longer for station agents. When I started there was much more paperwork to deal with, and different types of fare media to deal with as well.

The third week you’ll do AFC training(learning how to encode metrocards, and learn how to use the computer system in the booth). The last week of class is reviewing everything you’ve  learned in class. Then you’ll do a one day booth observation where you’ll work with a veteran station agent and observe how a day working in the booth is, but you won’t make any transactions or be responsible for any funds in the booth. 

The next two days you’ll do a booth takeover where you’ll be once again working in the booth with a veteran station agent, but you’ll be doing all the transactions and be responsible for all the money in the booth. So for those three days you won’t report to the school. You’ll be reporting on duty at the selected subway stations. The following day will be another review day, and review of your paperwork you retained from your days in the booth. And the next day will be finals day. It sounds like a lot, but you’ll get through it. Good luck and if you have any further questions while I’m class feel free to inbox me. 

8 minutes ago, Thediz1 said:

Has anyone from the 1400s recieved an email or letter? Just curious

A typical size of a station agent class is 10-20 people. But in the odd instance can be less than 10 people. 

19 hours ago, Maican90 said:

Thank you, I’m excited and I‘d appreciate any knowledge or additional insight you may be able to share with me. Looking forward to running into you as well. 

Just inbox me with any questions you may have. 

On 12/30/2019 at 7:17 PM, Mtahopeful121986 said:

I seen on the mta website it has a exam being held  in 2020 called fare enforcement agent. Curious to know is that gonna be a new title? Something similiar to station agent? Or is it a mta law enforcement position 

On 2/8/2020 at 12:44 AM, ThunderMountain said:

Pay is decent and seems interesting but seems like it is a basically security position while Enforcing the pay since it does say it requires a security license . Anyone got any information about this position at all? Already read the Notice Of Examination and i cannot find any information about this position at all!

On 12/30/2019 at 9:10 PM, +Young+ said:

As soon as I saw this, I thought it was going to be those folks on the Select Bus Service routes who check the receipts of those who paid on the fare. Those that are in the subway just watch to make sure everyone paid through the turnstile, however with OMNY coming out and the Metro Card eventually disappearing, I don't know how that's all going to work out.

To answer all questions, This isn't A new title. This job is the security agents you see checking receipts, and handing out summons to people who beat the fare on the select buses. It's just before it was a pseudo promotion for property protection agents who applied to work in the fare enforcement task force. So it was never open to the public to apply for. Now they have given the job a title, and opened it up to the public to take an exam for. And only police officers monitor for fare beating on subway stations. The MTA doesn't have anyone assigned for that task. The agents you see in the subway stations, are collecting agents, and they're there to collect revenue from vending machines and service booths, and also guard revenue maintainers when they have to service vending machines. And the reason you couldn't find any information on the title, is because it never existed in a official capacity as a title, this is the very first time this job has been offered to the public for an examination.

On 2/27/2020 at 6:52 PM, Maican90 said:

Is anyone on here starting class March 30th ?, that is the start date of class for me. I was sworn in today did my fingerprinting and took my picture as the final phase of processing.

Congrats, and welcome aboard. You’ll have 4 weeks of class to absorb as much as you can from the official training course, but you won’t truly learn the job until you’re in the field. Maybe one of these days in the near future I’ll have the pleasure of running into you. In your first year while you’re a probie, do your job to the letter and avoid customer complaints as best as you can, and you’ll breeze through your one year of probation. Once again congrats, and good fortune on your new career. 

On 2/18/2020 at 3:09 PM, Thediz1 said:

Do they notify you as immediately as your nuber is called or does it take a few days or weeks for the email or letter. Thanks in advance

The MYA doesn’t move that fast. Just because they get up to your number, doesn’t mean they’re going to immediately send you an email to report for pre-employment. They have get classes scheduled, and have the budget to hire new agents at the time or the need for new agents at the time as well. Like I previously posted you guys really need to stop rushing the process. Just wait patiently, your time will comen before I got hire in 2005 I just took the exam, got my list number and didn’t think much of being called. That’s how you’ve gotta he taking these civil service exams. It could take anywhere from 1 year to 5 years or longer in some cases to be called for processing. 

On 2/14/2020 at 2:38 PM, Raja said:

Can any one plz tell me what is the current salary for newly appointed station agents?

It’s roughly about $21-$22 per hour. 

1 hour ago, SA2019 said:

Good morning. Any updates? I don't want to call too much...🌞

Honestly I’d advise all you guys to just stop calling period. All you’re doing is making the wait to be called seem longer. Just continue on without and when they get to your number you’ll be contacted. Now if an unreasonable amount of time passes by, then I’d call. But to blunt TA only needs a certain number of agents, and they don’t hire much past that hard set number of 2800 clerks. The y only hire as people promote, retire or get terminated. They’ll probably hire two classes per month for a few months to come and then stop hiring for a while. Usually a class consist of 20 people. But by all means don’t drive your self crazy calling so much. 

20 minutes ago, Tortilla said:

THANKS!

 

It answered the questions I had, I haven't been hired YET just to be clear, still a few hundred numbers away at 17** Didn't want to give the wrong impression. 

 

Sry bout the delayed thx/re-reply, I used to check this forum everyday but it went dormant for long stretches too many times so I pop in roughly every couple weeks. 

 

Yeah I realized that after typing my reponer, but figured you’d get the gist of what I was saying. 

44 minutes ago, Thediz1 said:

Is there a way to prepare or study for these classes?

There’s no need to study for anything in advance, as the rule book won’t have much relevant for you to study from for class. Everything or well most of the materials you need will be taught to you when classes start. The material isn’t very difficult so I wouldn’t stress it too much. They’ll go over how to fill out the paperwork, which really isn’t much any more. When I started there was far much more paperwork to learn and much more revenue fare types in the booth. Now agents only deal with cash, and hardly have any paperwork. They’ll show you how to encode metro cards, and teach you the rules and regulations. 

18 minutes ago, Thediz1 said:

If anyone knows where are the classes held? How many hours per day are the classes? What time do they start? Thanks in advance.

Classes are primarily held at the Transit Learning Center (A former public school) in the Coney Island area of Brooklyn. Classes are a normal work days le gut of 8 hours. Classes start at either 7am or 8am. Depending on when your instructors Yelp you to report to class. 

1 hour ago, Tortilla said:

Supervisors / Current employees,

 

Do we report to one location to punch in everyday & then receive our assigned work station or is that handled at the booth we're assigned to? 

 

The letter states that we will be required to work any & all shifts in any & all booths* 

 

Is that scheduled 1 week in advance / never changes or could it change on an daily basis to accommodate station needs?

 

Gonna be commuting in from eastern long island & am curious so I can plan on when I need to start driving or what time i need to catch the LIRR to get where I need to be on time.

Thanks,

#17**

 

*Not verbatim

First and foremost congrats on being hired. Now to answer your questions. While you’re in class I’d suggest you drive being as much class time takes place at the Learning Center(Formerly PS 248), at 25th Avenue in Brooklyn. Since you live in Long Island this would be a mission for you to get to on the train everyday. You’ve finished class then I’d suggest you take the system. Because if you’re late they aren’t going to want to hear you had car trouble or there was traffic. As per the rule book you’re to travel to work using the system. They give us a pass to use for travel on the system. Since you live in Long Island you’ll get your pass with Long Island commuter railroad privileges. 
 

now as far as scheduling you’re going to be what call as an extra, and yes it’s exactly what it sounds like, you’re an extra body to be used as the system sees fit. Each day depending on your tour of duty you’ll call OSAC(Operation Support Assignment Center) at a designated time frame and a supervisor on The desk will give you your assignment for the following day. On your RDOs(Regular Days Off) <As you can see there’s lots or jargon and acronyms for you to learn while working for transit>You’ll call for your assignment the day before you’re scheduled to return to work. Now normally when you’re assigned as an extra out of class they’ll assign you to what we call a zone depending on your home subway station(the closest subway station to your home address, or whatever station you choose as your home station) and you’ll be assigned a job within that area. But sometimes they will send you wherever they need you, especially if you get bumped out of that job. As an extra you’re usually filling in for an agent that’s sick or has an approved leave day. If covering for a sick agent and they return back to work, you’ll be bumped to wherever they need you to work in the system. Now you’ll work in this capacity u til you’re able to pick a steady job during the station agents job pick, which is every 6 months. There’s much more info for you to learn, but too much for me to type here. I hope this has answered all your questions. If you have anymore questions, please feel free to private message me. Have a great day. 

7 hours ago, SeanH525 said:

Oh boy. I thought they only do the randoms for safety sensitive positions? So I might have to go down there again for drug tests? Those chairs really are the worst.

and old convictions don’t matter as long as you’re honest with them. I never got convicted but I was arrested once and had a few summons on my record. I brought them everything I ever got from both counties I ever got into trouble in.

You don’t go to the lab only for randoms on safety sensitive titles. You are required to go the MAC(Medical Assessment Clinic) if you’re out of work more than 21 calendar days sick, you’re in an accident in a transit vehicle, or you’re suspected of being under the influence by a supervisor or manager. Also anytime you go for a promotion, you need to submit a urine test.   So as you can see there’s a whole host of reasons you’ll need to keep going back to 180 over the course of your career.