10 accidents!

Shane Cowlishaw at Stuff reports:

It took 10 accidents before Go Wellington fired a bus driver.

Ray Cutter was dismissed after an accident in January last year in which the back door of his bus, which was carrying 20 passengers, was shattered when it hit a rubbish skip in Adelaide Rd.

And the Employment Relations Authority has now ruled against his claim that dismissal for poor performance was unjustified.

Mr Cutter and the Wellington Tramways Union said the accident happened more than seven months after a previous warning, which should have been removed from his record after six months.

So the union view is that warnings are just temporary?

“The logic of the union’s position – that a dismissal for dangerous poor performance could only be made where a final written warning had been issued within the last six months – would mean a driver could repeatedly have an “at fault” accident every six months and one day and never be dismissed.

“It is a construction of the terms of the employment agreement that I consider neither case law nor commonsense supports.”

I’m amazed they allowed it to get as high as 10 accidents before they sacked him.

Mr Cutter told The Dominion Post yesterday that his case was another where Go Wellington had disciplined its driver for accidents caused by other reckless road users.

Despite being awarded accolades for safe driving in the months before, he had been sacked regardless, he said. “A whole year of my life, where I have been unable to get another job due to a probable NZ Bus-inspired ‘blacklist’, has been wasted.”

Oh yes it is all other people’s faults.

The 10 accidents happened a 16 month period, so on average two accidents every quarter.