Mad for my friend

[denverpilot]

We have an old friend who many years ago had various problems in life including a struggling business.

He moved to Vegas and became a city bus driver. He likes it. He loves telling all the crazy stories and seeing the insane stuff people do.

He told me tonight that the bus company is “essential” of course. But he also shared that the bus company won’t allow drivers to wear ANY protective gear at all, even if they provide it.

He just wants a mask and gloves.

Damn bus company doesn’t want passengers thinking the bus is contaminated and it’s all about image.

He says they’ll be reprimanded and sent home the first time, most likely, and fired the second.

He got coughed on heavily helping a wheelchair rider a couple days ago.

What a sick bunch of ****ers running the Vegas city busses. Clearly they don’t consider him essential, they consider him expendable. *******s.

Rant over. But still mad.

 

[luvflyin]

We have an old friend who many years ago had various problems in life including a struggling business.

He moved to Vegas and became a city bus driver. He likes it. He loves telling all the crazy stories and seeing the insane stuff people do.

He told me tonight that the bus company is “essential” of course. But he also shared that the bus company won’t allow drivers to wear ANY protective gear at all, even if they provide it.

He just wants a mask and gloves.

Damn bus company doesn’t want passengers thinking the bus is contaminated and it’s all about image.

He says they’ll be reprimanded and sent home the first time, most likely, and fired the second.

He got coughed on heavily helping a wheelchair rider a couple days ago.

What a sick bunch of ****ers running the Vegas city busses. Clearly they don’t consider him essential, they consider him expendable. *******s.

Rant over. But still mad.

https://www.reviewjournal.com/ or similar

 

[denverpilot]

https://www.reviewjournal.com/ or similar

I mentioned the idea of some anonymous calls to the press but don’t know if they will do it, or if their press would care.

He’s not nearly as mad about it as I am. Sigh.

 

[wsuffa]

Same thing some other cities are doing.

 

[William Pete Hodges]

That sounds unreasonable to me. If he is in a union he could ask the union rep about it, but that escalates it perhaps without good resolution quickly. Since soap kills the virus I would get some waterless hand cleaner (without pumice) and a hand towel or two, and wash my hands regularly (my face too sometimes) and wipe off the steering wheel and other controls. I would follow the presidential guidelines as much as possible within the confines of my own bus and if asked about it I would say so. If reprimanded for this behavior I'd call the local news and my city counselman about it. They can't fault you for obeying what the President, the CDC, and FEMA is asking you to do.
If all else fails then call in sick and quarantine yourself but I don't think it will come to that. Reasonable people should be able to see reason.

 

[timwinters]

I'm with you on this one Nate. I experienced something similar this morning...

I gave blood, I try to do so religiously every 8 to 10 weeks because it helps to lower my excessive iron levels. plus, I'm doing good for society.

well, this morning when I went in, I was surprised to see that none of the nurses were wearing masks. I asked one of them about it and she said, "don't get me started, we wanted to but our director said we can't because of the negative perception."

so I found the director after I gave blood and (politely) ripped him a new azzhole for putting both his staff and the donors at risk because of his presumed negative perception. f****** idiot.

...He just smiled and nodded cluelessly like a good marketing person who isn't even a medical professional...

 

[Everskyward]

We have an old friend who many years ago had various problems in life including a struggling business.

He moved to Vegas and became a city bus driver. He likes it. He loves telling all the crazy stories and seeing the insane stuff people do.

He told me tonight that the bus company is “essential” of course. But he also shared that the bus company won’t allow drivers to wear ANY protective gear at all, even if they provide it.

He just wants a mask and gloves.

Damn bus company doesn’t want passengers thinking the bus is contaminated and it’s all about image.

He says they’ll be reprimanded and sent home the first time, most likely, and fired the second.

He got coughed on heavily helping a wheelchair rider a couple days ago.

What a sick bunch of ****ers running the Vegas city busses. Clearly they don’t consider him essential, they consider him expendable. *******s.

Rant over. But still mad.

That's nuts! Even before the shelter in place orders, I saw bus drivers wearing masks here. Now they ask you to board through the rear doors in order to protect the driver. I haven't been on a bus in at least a couple weeks, but they run past where I live, mostly empty. They are cutting back on the schedule next week.

 

[Brad Z]

Is he really a city bus driver, or one of the billion private shuttle bus drivers in Vegas? Seems weird that a public transportation system would prohibit employees from using PPE. If anything, they should be providing it.

If he shows up to work with his gloves and mask on and gets fired, I'm pretty sure he'd have no problem finding a lawyer to take on his case.

 

[Kenny Phillips]

We have an old friend who many years ago had various problems in life including a struggling business.

He moved to Vegas and became a city bus driver. He likes it. He loves telling all the crazy stories and seeing the insane stuff people do.

He told me tonight that the bus company is “essential” of course. But he also shared that the bus company won’t allow drivers to wear ANY protective gear at all, even if they provide it.

He just wants a mask and gloves.

Damn bus company doesn’t want passengers thinking the bus is contaminated and it’s all about image.

He says they’ll be reprimanded and sent home the first time, most likely, and fired the second.

He got coughed on heavily helping a wheelchair rider a couple days ago.

What a sick bunch of ****ers running the Vegas city busses. Clearly they don’t consider him essential, they consider him expendable. *******s.

Rant over. But still mad.

Several nurses were literally fired for wearing protective gear; some are suing, as they should.

 

[GRG55]

This sort of thread starts me thinking maybe there is something to the chemtrails thing...

It's like swaths of our societies have lost the ability to apply common sense.

 

[Shawn]

Agree or disagree the perception problem is not "this bus must be contaminated" but rather keeping people from thinking "Well, if HE is wearing a mask, then I SHOULD be too"...and creating a run on and hoarding PPE supplies by the mass public vs leaving them for the first responders.

It's like swaths of our societies have lost the ability to apply common sense.

Common sense in no longer allowed. You have to regulate to the lowest common denominator. People are stupid.

 

[James331]

We have an old friend who many years ago had various problems in life including a struggling business.

He moved to Vegas and became a city bus driver. He likes it. He loves telling all the crazy stories and seeing the insane stuff people do.

He told me tonight that the bus company is “essential” of course. But he also shared that the bus company won’t allow drivers to wear ANY protective gear at all, even if they provide it.

He just wants a mask and gloves.

Damn bus company doesn’t want passengers thinking the bus is contaminated and it’s all about image.

He says they’ll be reprimanded and sent home the first time, most likely, and fired the second.

He got coughed on heavily helping a wheelchair rider a couple days ago.

What a sick bunch of ****ers running the Vegas city busses. Clearly they don’t consider him essential, they consider him expendable. *******s.

Rant over. But still mad.

Wear them anyway, film the firing, find lawyer

 

[RyanB]

Yeah that’s wrong! Companies that put themselves before their employees should and usually do come under fire in the public eye, given enough time.

I really feel for your friend and hope things get better.

 

[Shawn]

Wear them anyway, film the firing, find lawyer

Agreed but easier to say than do if you are dependent on that job, especially in this unemployment climate.

 

[RyanB]

Agreed but easier to say than do if you are dependent on that job, especially in this unemployment climate.

The payout from the lawsuit would be more than the unemployment check anyway!

 

[Notrub]

How do u take it to court if courts are not open?

 

[455 Bravo Uniform]

Agreed but easier to say than do if you are dependent on that job, especially in this unemployment climate.

True. Easy to thumb ones nose at someone else’s boss.

 

[denverpilot]

How do u take it to court if courts are not open?

Or you end up dead.

 

[Dan Thomas]

Common sense in no longer allowed. You have to regulate to the lowest common denominator. People are stupid.

And that just validates the lowest common denominators, making them think that they're right. It's like giving all the students an A and then wondering why graduates can't spell or figure numbers or read anything. A society gets what it deserves.

 

[wrbix]

A society gets what it deserves.

.....and what they vote for when uninformed/uneducated.
But unfortunately the rest of us get it too, when we don’t deserve it.

 

[Zeldman]

find lawyer

And that is another problem. Too many folks expect that they should be made independently wealthy because something does not make them happy. It would be like me suing Walmart for not having a favorite brand of TP.

(not accusing you James, or anyone else, just making a general statement)

 

[James331]

And that is another problem. Too many folks expect that they should be made independently wealthy because something does not make them happy. It would be like me suing Walmart for not having a favorite brand of TP.

(not accusing you James, or anyone else, just making a general statement)

I agree, except in this situation someone wants to protect them self with zero expenses or lack of productivity, that should cost you a few bucks

 

[JOhnH]

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it. They help a little in preventing you from spreading it if you have it, but if you have it, you shouldn't be driving a city bus. And unnecessary use of these masks is part of why hospitals don't have enough. It is just as bad as toilet paper hoarders.

 

[James331]

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it. They help a little in preventing you from spreading it if you have it, but if you have it, you shouldn't be driving a city bus. And unnecessary use of these masks is part of why hospitals don't have enough. It is just as bad as toilet paper hoarders.

True, I don’t wear a mask or gloves and I’m not exactly too worried about this ether, now I’m also not going to visit older family members and hug them right now ether.

That’s said, to me it’s like someone taking a conservative approach to weather and not going up in conditions I wouldn’t have a issue with, do I think “I would take that!”, sure, but I don’t punish him for not flying.

Dude drives a bus, want to wear a mask fine, doesn’t effect his job at all, I’d also say telling a employee right now that you’ll fire him if he wears PPE during what the TV says is a “pandemic” that’s a even worse look than one of his drivers wearing a little mask.

Idiot is worried about the image of a BUS DRIVER wearing a mask...if that driver would have recorded that meeting and posted it to the companies Facebook or Instagram, lol

 

[denverpilot]

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it. They help a little in preventing you from spreading it if you have it, but if you have it, you shouldn't be driving a city bus. And unnecessary use of these masks is part of why hospitals don't have enough. It is just as bad as toilet paper hoarders.

He wasn’t asking to use a manufactured mask.

Effective or not, manufactured or not, if he provided it, screw them.

Maybe he bought them ten years ago knowing his job is risky or he has an immune system issue and rotates stock regularly.

However you slice it, it’s none of their business. He can do the job just fine with or without PPG on.

Marketing a city bus as anything OTHER than a 24/7 mobile infectious disease carrier even on a normal day, is fiction. LOL.

Same with the cute yellow school busses.

 

[sarangan]

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it. They help a little in preventing you from spreading it if you have it, but if you have it, you shouldn't be driving a city bus. And unnecessary use of these masks is part of why hospitals don't have enough. It is just as bad as toilet paper hoarders.

I don't know about masks, but gloves do protect you to some level, especially if you are in a public place and have to touch a lot of things. Same reason why we wear gloves when cleaning the toilet.

 

[Bill]

I’d have the opposite reaction, if I saw the driver wearing a mask and gloves I’d think good, the company is taking proper precautions.

 

[William Pete Hodges]

Going back to the initial opening of this thread, I wonder if the driver's situation has changed since the President's task force has recommended the use of cloth masks for the general public. My wife wife sewed one up for me. She got a pattern online and it has a pocket for adding additional filter material, like a coffee filter cut to size. The material is beige with blue polka dots! When I asked about that she smiled and said "those are GenTune colors!" (GenTune is my business). My customers got a good laugh on that one! It is nice to know we can still see the humor even in a bad situation.

One more quick thought... My great grandfather George Hodges died of the flu in the flu pandemic of 1918. The soldiers of WW1 were coming home and they brought it home with them. 500 millón worldwide were infected. The death rate for all ages was about 10%. Today the death rate is about 2.5%. All we really need now is a good treatment that could cut the death rate in half or more, then this whole situation would be behind us. Let's pray that we get a breakthrough soon. In the meantime, stay safe and stay well!

 

[JOhnH]

Going back to the initial opening of this thread, I wonder if the driver's situation has changed since the President's task force has recommended the use of cloth masks for the general public. My wife wife sewed one up for me. She got a pattern online and it has a pocket for adding additional filter material, like a coffee filter cut to size. The material is beige with blue polka dots! When I asked about that she smiled and said "those are GenTune colors!" (GenTune is my business). My customers got a good laugh on that one! It is nice to know we can still see the humor even in a bad situation.

I can't speak for the OP, but I now admit my reply was wrong, even if it was the official guidance at the time. My wife has also made a mask for me, complete with the pocket for additional filter material. Since she is a veterinarian she obtained a piece of surgical drape material to use.

Previously, I said:

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it. They help a little in preventing you from spreading it if you have it, but if you have it, you shouldn't be driving a city bus. And unnecessary use of these masks is part of why hospitals don't have enough. It is just as bad as toilet paper hoarders.

The best reasons to wear a mask are to help slow the spread of your own germs to others through coughing or sneezing, and also to help remind you to not touch your face. But that last part will still take practice. I find myself reaching to adjust the mask quite often. It isn't just my wife's mask; I also do this when I wear one of the surgical masks from the veterinary clinic.

 

[flyingron]

Sorry, but I agree with the company on this. At least in regards to the masks.

Masks do very very little to protect YOU from getting it.

That last state is unfounded. Any non-politicized study says that masks aren't a GUARANTEE, you still want to supplement it with the other guidance (avoiding contact, handwashing), but don't say they do "very little"

 

[JOhnH]

That last state is unfounded. Any non-politicized study says that masks aren't a GUARANTEE, you still want to supplement it with the other guidance (avoiding contact, handwashing), but don't say they do "very little"

Sorry. I respectfully disagree. I have spoken with too many Doctors and nurses and other health professionals to change my mind due to something I read on the internet. I stand by my statement that masks alone do very little to protect you. Even you said they must be supplemented with other methods, and it is those other methods that give the most protection. Provide me with a citation that shows me wrong, and if I agree, I will apologize. I have been doing a lot of that lately.

However, they do a much better job at helping to reduce the spread to others.

 

[azure]

That last state is unfounded. Any non-politicized study says that masks aren't a GUARANTEE, you still want to supplement it with the other guidance (avoiding contact, handwashing), but don't say they do "very little"

The way I see it is this: unless I'm wearing a commercial mask that seals well against my face (these are unobtainium right now), a lot of the air I breathe will not be coming through the mask. So if someone has coughed or sneezed (or even just blown) aerosolized droplets into my space, there's a good chance I will ingest some of them. On the other hand, if I'm infected and wearing a mask, even just a makeshift one, the air that escapes around the sides will not travel as far undissipated as if I wasn't wearing one, and so will be less likely to invade someone else's space.

That's why I see the advice for everyone to wear a mask in crowded spaces, PLUS practice physical distancing to the extent possible, as the most reasonable advice. And the masks are MOSTLY to prevent transmission FROM an infected person (who could be me), LESS (but not entirely) to protect me against catching the virus from someone else.

 

[William Pete Hodges]

Sorry. I respectfully disagree. I have spoken with too many Doctors and nurses and other health professionals to change my mind due to something I read on the internet. I stand by my statement that masks alone do very little to protect you. ...
However, they do a much better job at helping to reduce the spread to others.

My research said a single layer handkerchief is 2% efficient per layer at protecting you. A surgical mask is about 60%. An N95 mask is 95% and it is not very comfortable to wear for long periods. All the masks are more effective at preventing the spread of germs from you than to you. That is why surgeons wear masks, to keep from infecting the patient, not the doctor. If everyone wore a mask disease transmission would be reduced overall, but the mask doesn't do that much to protect you from exposure. BUT it's a lot better than doing nothing.

 

[denverpilot]

Going back to the initial opening of this thread, I wonder if the driver's situation has changed since the President's task force has recommended the use of cloth masks for the general public.

Nope. He posted today that the extent of his protection is some police tape to keep people to the rear, no fares being collected, and an 8.5 x 11 sign mounted near him up front where nobody can see it, that you’re not allowed to board if you tested positive.

He said an idiot who thought he was on the wrong bus tore down the tape and cane forward 20 minutes into his shift.

Zero PPE but he truly thinks he’s had it already or has just given up and realizes that “essential” really means “expendable” at this point. He and his SO had some fluish symptoms at least a week before any of this really got rolling.

He knows about the dead Detroit bus driver also.

And I do know for certain that the press in his area HAS been informed and has NOT reported on it. So there’s that...

Not that anyone else in public transport is faring any better, but it sucks.

 

[flyingron]

he way I see it is this: unless I'm wearing a commercial mask that seals well against my face (these are unobtainium right now), a lot of the air I breathe will not be coming through the mask.

My N95 sucks into my face when I breathe in. I have them because much of the wood I sand in my shop I am allergic to.

 

[azure]

My N95 sucks into my face when I breathe in. I have them because much of the wood I sand in my shop I am allergic to.

Good for you. As I said, I can't buy even commercial dust masks here now. And what I wrote about the makeshift kind, I have no doubt is true unless they're made by someone who really knows what they're doing.

 

[diabolical]

As I’m a medic working Fire Rescue in South Florida I have a vested interest in wearing masks that work and really appreciate that and when others are wearing masks around me! When I’m on a known or suspect COV-19 call I’m wearing a N-100 mask. I wore a N-95 mask for years but several years ago my face structure must have changed somewhat and the N-95 masks no longer sealed properly on me so I had to be switched to a medium/large size N-100 Moldex 2730. Our masks are fit-tested on us once a year and the fit is empirically tested by a machine with no dawg in the fight! That’s to say, you pass or you don’t. The testing period consists of doing some exercises such as moving head side to side, up and down, reading a passage out loud, holding still, bending over and doing a few more things while the machine tests the atmosphere inside the mask for presence of a specific chemical in the room in a known concentration. This is done also with our SCBAs which are our masks we wear into fire and other noxious atmospheres. We realize that a surgical mask isn’t a gold standard of protection but anything may help protect to a degree. And is better than nothing at all! The gold standard is positive pressure and encapsulated suits but unfortunately that’s not practical except for decontamination or in a hospital setting. The first thing we’re doing when we get to a patient is putting a mask on them and then start the assessment. Realistically, any mask may help somewhat;; even a T-Shirt knotted up into several layers may protect you or the people around you. Keep your exposures short, stay upwind and as far away as possible. Reduce your risk by all means possible and realize that it’s not just a lung issue, can affect many other organs including heart, and take it seriously for everyone’s sake. Remember, the more that you can stay home (if you have that option) the less risk you should have. One last thing, politics from any side shouldn’t come into play in this fight: we should have a very common interest in survival! Best of luck to all y’all.