on social media , was that bus drivers were , indeed , largely left out of the discussion about the new routes .
John Stovall , president of Teamsters Local 783 , confirmed to one local news outlet that bus drivers were working “ Thursday and Friday to practice routes and let the district know what doesn ’ t work .” Further , he noted “ They should ’ ve probably started all of this a month , a month and a half ago . Bring the drivers in , have them run the route , come back , and tell them what ’ s not going to work .”
Dr . Pollio , rightfully , accepted blame and thanked the drivers for their “ extremely hard ” work . He reported to local media that he met with bus drivers in person on Friday , the original third day of school , and that JCPS was working with bus drivers to make needed improvements to avoid another disaster . Further , he committed , going forward , to a “ standing meeting with them ( bus drivers ) once a month ” to “ discuss and talk about things .”
Dr . Pollio pulled a familiar play out of the leadership playbook , putting the blame on his shoulders while lauding the dedication and service of the laborers . Yet , only after the disaster did he bother to ask those who were actually in the field doing the work , what they thought . Classic .
The reality is that bus drivers find themselves in good company . The proletariat , in our culture , is changing . No longer are those doing the work of an organization confined to assembly line work or paying union dues . Larger companies are moving legal work in
house , employing attorneys instead of contracting to private firms . Psychologists are now commonly employed by larger organizations , upending the stereotypical solo private practice therapist . Physicians , need it even be said in these pages , have moved to employment in droves , changing the entire structure and dynamic of medicine . Yet what has not changed is that those doing the work have something to say , with voices that too often go unheard ( if asked for at all ). Workers , in our current times , may have both valuable , field-tested knowledge to share , and also , now more than ever , opinions gleaned through a lens of academic and educational achievement . The price for not listening can be steep . Dr . Pollio , and sadly our students , learned this lesson the hard way .
It does not take a Marxist revolution , nor am I suggesting one , to elevate the proletariat , only the mere act of listening and hearing the voices of those on the ground and in the field . Regardless of your opinion of where fault lies in this debacle , one thing is glaringly clear : the leadership playbook is tired and inadequate in our current times . Sure , a company with a warm and cozy incubation at MIT is nice , but it isn ’ t worth a damn when a first grader is sitting on a school bus after 9 p . m ., a victim of the algorithm formed aloft in the bourgeois clouds . Yet , this situation reveals a sad and pervasive truth in workplace leadership , evident to bus drivers and physicians alike : any boots-on-the-ground proletariat knows that what is valued more than their “ service ” and “ dedication ” is actually their silence .
Dr . Kolter is a practicing internist with Baptist Health .
SECOND OPINION
October 2023 29