PORTLAND, Ore. — TriMet is now offering newly hired bus drivers a $2,500 hiring bonus. The announcement on Nov. 29 comes amid a staffing shortage.
"We provide so much service, so we need to keep that pull of qualified applicants coming in," said Tia York, TriMet's public information officer. "We need dozens of people every month to fulfill all the positions that we have and that we anticipate with service expanding in the future."
The hiring bonus is in addition to increased starting pay of $21.36 per hour that was announced in October. Bus drivers are guaranteed to earn at least $68,000 per year after working full-time for three years, TriMet said.
"We're looking for people who may not necessarily have driving experience, but people who want to work with the public and enjoy providing excellent customer service to our community," said York.
TriMet will provide bus drivers with seven weeks of paid training. Anyone interested in more information or who wants to apply can go to TriMet's website.
Oregon's unemployment rate dropped to 4.4% in October, down from 4.7% in September. Despite that, many employers continue to have difficulty finding new workers to hire and more companies are coming up with new incentives to attract employees. The labor shortage spans multiple industries, from healthcare and education, to food and transportation services.