Exam 6600 Station Agent 6600 Hiring Process

[hmc12989]

There is no medical like there is for conductor. The drug test is all you do in terms of anything remotely medically related.

Of course there's training. They're not gonna send you to Parkchester on the 6 on a Monday morning without teaching you the basics - although if that's how they broke me in I probably would have quit on the spot 😂😂. Training is 5 weeks at PS248 in Brooklyn (25 Av on the D) and if you're lucky you might get to go to 14th Street for AFC training (that's the metrocard related portion of training) - or not so lucky if you live relatively close to PS248. (I live in the Bronx and had the pleasure of schlepping it to Brooklyn EVERYDAY for class...I didn't get sorted into the 14th Street group)

The first couple days is 8-4 in downtown Brooklyn - 1 day at 130 Livingston for HR related stuff, then a day at the union hall for your union orientation.

[Mina]

Oh okay that doesn’t sound too bad. Lol I kno it was dumb question to ask about training but some jobs don’t really do extensive trainings like that. I mean like they will train u for like a couple of days then expect u to kno everything after. I meant to ask that question differently lol.

But thank you so much for understanding and answering it perfectly! I take it that ur an employee already, so thanks so much for your info it’s very helpful!

Hopefully we hear something soon tho. 

[hmc12989]

Lol no problem. The job is more involved than it seems at face value. Hell, we spent a week doing manual fare reports which you RARELY do IRL.

[Lea]

20 hours ago, hmc12989 said:

There is no medical like there is for conductor. The drug test is all you do in terms of anything remotely medically related.

Of course there's training. They're not gonna send you to Parkchester on the 6 on a Monday morning without teaching you the basics - although if that's how they broke me in I probably would have quit on the spot 😂😂. Training is 5 weeks at PS248 in Brooklyn (25 Av on the D) and if you're lucky you might get to go to 14th Street for AFC training (that's the metrocard related portion of training) - or not so lucky if you live relatively close to PS248. (I live in the Bronx and had the pleasure of schlepping it to Brooklyn EVERYDAY for class...I didn't get sorted into the 14th Street group)

The first couple days is 8-4 in downtown Brooklyn - 1 day at 130 Livingston for HR related stuff, then a day at the union hall for your union orientation.

Hello, 

1. Would you be able to tell me the time that you had to report everyday for the official training? Also do you know if they were able to work with anyone that couldn’t make that time?

2. Does half of the class go to Brooklyn and the other half 14th st and then switch or is your training at just one location for the whole time?

[hmc12989]

Classroom training is 7-3. When you get sent to the booths to observe and take over, you are at the mercy of the booth hours...and what they send you to...there is no negotiating that either. You may live deep in Brooklyn and be sent to Bedford Park Boulevard on the D which starts at 5:30am. There is no working with you if 7-3 doesn't work. You make it work or you don't keep the job. Transit expects you to make them your priority. It sucks, believe me, but it's a month. You can survive it.

Half of my class went to 14th St for their metrocard training. Half stayed at 248 for ALL of the training. We were divided alphabetically for that.

My advice if you hate mornings (as I do)...pick a tour that works for you in your class pick if you have the option. I was a zombie for the month I was in class but after that I was fortunate to pick PM tour. That too is dependent on the number of slots the class is given per tour on the pick. The department that handles staffing could just decide they need bodies on one tour and that's it.

[Lea]

27 minutes ago, hmc12989 said:

Classroom training is 7-3. When you get sent to the booths to observe and take over, you are at the mercy of the booth hours...and what they send you to...there is no negotiating that either. You may live deep in Brooklyn and be sent to Bedford Park Boulevard on the D which starts at 5:30am. There is no working with you if 7-3 doesn't work. You make it work or you don't keep the job. Transit expects you to make them your priority. It sucks, believe me, but it's a month. You can survive it.

Half of my class went to 14th St for their metrocard training. Half stayed at 248 for ALL of the training. We were divided alphabetically for that.

My advice if you hate mornings (as I do)...pick a tour that works for you in your class pick if you have the option. I was a zombie for the month I was in class but after that I was fortunate to pick PM tour. That too is dependent on the number of slots the class is given per tour on the pick. The department that handles staffing could just decide they need bodies on one tour and that's it.

Thanks so much for the info!

One more question, are you most likely to be placed at stations in your zone or is that also a slim chance?

[hmc12989]

Depends. Seems like people who live in Brooklyn get bounced around. I live in Zone 1 and the only time I've dipped into Zone 2 is by choice on my day off...and it was a lunch job that started in Zone 1. Zones are Bronx & Manhattan to 50th St (1), The rest of Manhattan and Queens (2), and Brooklyn (3). Even though the Rockaways are in Queens I think they fall into Zone 3.

They don't pay attention to where you live when you do booth observations and takeovers. I had one sorta nearby and two wayyyyy downtown.

Edited February 12, 2019 by hmc12989

[TrueBlu]

14 hours ago, hmc12989 said:

Depends. Seems like people who live in Brooklyn get bounced around. I live in Zone 1 and the only time I've dipped into Zone 2 is by choice on my day off...and it was a lunch job that started in Zone 1. Zones are Bronx & Manhattan to 50th St (1), The rest of Manhattan and Queens (2), and Brooklyn (3). Even though the Rockaways are in Queens I think they fall into Zone 3.

They don't pay attention to where you live when you do booth observations and takeovers. I had one sorta nearby and two wayyyyy downtown.

Sorry but a little confusing...another words your saying Manhattan is divided between Zone 1 and Zone 2...so your saying if you live in the Bronx/Manhattan and from let’s say Van Cortlandt  (bx) and all the way down to 50th street would be considered Zone 1. Just making sure I’m understanding you here...Good info to know in advance!!

[hmc12989]

Exactly what I'm saying. The furthest south I've been in a straight booth is Rockefeller Center and I'm not sure if that was Zone 1 or 2 because it's 47-50th Street 😂 One of my takeover booths was Spring Street on the C. That would obviously be Zone 2.

I live off the 1 line. For the most part they keep me there or on the A or C. I know they're desperate if I go any further east than the D line and even that doesn't happen all that often. Most of my off my line work is for OT because they tell you what they have and you can cherry pick what you want from it. (Cherry pick being relative since I'm still towards the bottom of the OT list lol - but even THAT goes by zone)

Edited February 12, 2019 by hmc12989

[TrueBlu]

15 minutes ago, hmc12989 said:

Exactly what I'm saying. The furthest south I've been in a straight booth is Rockefeller Center and I'm not sure if that was Zone 1 or 2 because it's 47-50th Street 😂 One of my takeover booths was Spring Street on the C. That would obviously be Zone 2.

I live off the 1 line. For the most part they keep me there or on the A or C. I know they're desperate if I go any further east than the D line and even that doesn't happen all that often. Most of my off my line work is for OT because they tell you what they have and you can cherry pick what you want from it. (Cherry pick being relative since I'm still towards the bottom of the OT list lol - but even THAT goes by zone)

👍🏾 Sounds even better now😂. At least they try and keep you in your geographical area. So here I go as far as pay...do you work 35 hrs per week or 40? Biweekly pay or semi monthly (15th & 30th) ? Oh and is it paid training? Lol I’m assuming training  is paid but hmm u never know...thanks

Edited February 12, 2019 by TrueBlu
Error

[hmc12989]

Every other week pay day so 80 hour minimum check. It goes up from there - you get no lunch, extra 30 minutes straight pay, late clear for whatever reason (no relief and the person they find to take over takes an hour to get there, you get an hour at time and a half), double or working your day off is time and a half (or you can save some of it as OTO which you can use to take time off when you want)

TA don't play that unpaid training nonsense like LIRR does...$21.89/hr from day one. (That's current starting pay) I heard once upon a time the first couple days were paid at minimum wage so the people that show up on day 1 and decide to leave after realizing TA owns you for a while after you start weren't getting good money for wasting everyone's time, but they don't do that anymore.

[TrueBlu]

8 minutes ago, hmc12989 said:

Every other week pay day so 80 hour minimum check. It goes up from there - you get no lunch, extra 30 minutes straight pay, late clear for whatever reason (no relief and the person they find to take over takes an hour to get there, you get an hour at time and a half), double or working your day off is time and a half (or you can save some of it as OTO which you can use to take time off when you want)

TA don't play that unpaid training nonsense like LIRR does...$21.89/hr from day one. (That's current starting pay) I heard once upon a time the first couple days were paid at minimum wage so the people that show up on day 1 and decide to leave after realizing TA owns you for a while after you start weren't getting good money for wasting everyone's time, but they don't do that anymore.

Wow okay you break it down...good info and are union dues expensive?

[hmc12989]

30 and change a paycheck.

[TrueBlu]

7 minutes ago, hmc12989 said:

30 and change a paycheck.

Again thanks for being so informative and that’s not bad I suppose 😂

[hmc12989]

They provide your vision and dental coverage. If you look at it that way it's not so bad, ha.

Medical is thru transit and "free" but you contribute 2% of your check towards retiree healthcare. Pension is the biggest deduction that's not taxes. Tier 6 sucks. My husband is Tier 4, makes almost twice what I do and sees a similar dollar figure taken for his pension...but pension reform is an entirely different subject lol

Edited February 12, 2019 by hmc12989

[TrueBlu]

17 minutes ago, hmc12989 said:

They provide your vision and dental coverage. If you look at it that way it's not so bad, ha.

Medical is thru transit and "free" but you contribute 2% of your check towards retiree healthcare. Pension is the biggest deduction that's not taxes. Tier 6 sucks. My husband is Tier 4, makes almost twice what I do and sees a similar dollar figure taken for his pension...but pension reform is an entirely different subject lol

Hmm well we’ll well I was told you had to pay for health insurance by an TA employee... they pretty much told me nothing was free 😂 

So let me make sure I’m understanding correctly...union dues Pay for vision and dental and transit provides medical coverage at no particular cost expect 2% contribution. So we help pay for those who retire and we get it for free. Correct me if I’m not getting it.

[Mlad18]

1 hour ago, hmc12989 said:

Every other week pay day so 80 hour minimum check. It goes up from there - you get no lunch, extra 30 minutes straight pay, late clear for whatever reason (no relief and the person they find to take over takes an hour to get there, you get an hour at time and a half), double or working your day off is time and a half (or you can save some of it as OTO which you can use to take time off when you want)

TA don't play that unpaid training nonsense like LIRR does...$21.89/hr from day one. (That's current starting pay) I heard once upon a time the first couple days were paid at minimum wage so the people that show up on day 1 and decide to leave after realizing TA owns you for a while after you start weren't getting good money for wasting everyone's time, but they don't do that anymore.

That non paid only applies to those who are going for locomotive engineer trainee the phase 1 but if you pass to phase 2 then you are hired on. You get retro pay for the time spent non paid in phase 1. I just hired on as a AC but it’s weird lirr pay us weekly only managers are bi weekly..I thought it was weekly all throughout MTA...I was scheduled for a drug test for the station agent as well but I don’t have any days I wanted to just have a back up just Incase.

[StationAgent7-2015]

MTA has called up to list 2900. 

MTA has hired 516

im confused what happened to the people they have called up to number 2900 as of today?

 

[SeanH525]

Just now, StationAgent7-2015 said:

MTA has called up to list 2900. 

MTA has hired 516

im confused what happened to the people they have called up to number 2900 as of today?

 

There’s only so many people they can put in each monthly class for station agent, but for whatever reason they’re trying to make the pool of people called for final processing as small as possible by sending the majority of individuals on the list for their drug tests now rather than later. I guess it just makes it easier for them to exhaust the list that way.

[StationAgent7-2015]

1 minute ago, SeanH525 said:

There’s only so many people they can put in each monthly class for station agent, but for whatever reason they’re trying to make the pool of people called for final processing as small as possible by sending the majority of individuals on the list for their drug tests now rather than later. I guess it just makes it easier for them to exhaust the list that way.

So they are rushing through the list , or people are not getting the letters because they have moved and have not updated the new address change.?

 

[StationAgent7-2015]

2 minutes ago, SeanH525 said:

There’s only so many people they can put in each monthly class for station agent, but for whatever reason they’re trying to make the pool of people called for final processing as small as possible by sending the majority of individuals on the list for their drug tests now rather than later. I guess it just makes it easier for them to exhaust the list that way.

That’s insane I have waited for Over more then  4 years since taking this exam to be called .

 

[StationAgent7-2015]

Just now, StationAgent7-2015 said:

That’s insane I have waited for Over more then  4 years since taking this exam to be called .

 

Truthfully I had forgotten until the letter came in on 12/25/2018 then I remembered taking this exam 

[SeanH525]

1 minute ago, StationAgent7-2015 said:

So they are rushing through the list , or people are not getting the letters because they have moved and have not updated the new address change.?

 

I’m assuming they’re rushing through the list to A) get rid of some people that don’t show up or fail to respond, B) get rid of people who fail the drug test. I can’t say how many people aren’t getting their letters, but they clearly have enough people showing up and passing considering they were up to 516 the last time I called... and assuming you called recently, they’re still up to 516.

[hmc12989]

They're just going to keep people waiting on pins and needles. They can re-drug test you every 90 days if they want.

[SeanH525]

Just now, hmc12989 said:

They're just going to keep people waiting on pins and needles. They can re-drug test you every 90 days if they want.

This. I’m also guessing having people come in for multiple drug tests helps them to get rid of even more prospective people. Some I imagine won’t want to be bothered coming in a second time, others may fail a subsequent drug test even if they passed the first.