The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is announcing an “organizational” restructuring resulting in the dismissal of three executive directors and the modification of the position of another. These changes will make it possible to “lower by 8%” the payroll of the management committee.
In a press release, the organization confirmed on Friday that as of February 13, “its management committee will now have five executive directorates, rather than eight, as well as two deputy directors general”. “All of the responsibilities and expertise of STM employees will be integrated into these new departments,” it says.
According to our information, three high-ranking people thus lost their positions at the STM: the Director of Customer Experience and Commercial Activities, the Director of Planning, Maintenance, Infrastructure and Supply, then the Director of engineering and major projects. The executive director of bus maintenance will remain employed, but will now become senior director of the same division.
The company says it has to “rethink” in the face of “new travel habits of its customers”, so as to “change its ways of doing things in terms of planning and service delivery in order to offer more flexibility and performance to the greatest benefit of our customers”.
“This new organizational structure will also make it possible to maximize collaboration and agility within the STM in addition to laying the foundations necessary for the transformation to all-electric,” adds the organization.
Marie-Claude Léonard, Director General of the STM, said in a statement that “the context in which we operate continues to challenge us and inspire us to change”. “It is crucial that we adopt a transversal structure to better support our employees in the delivery of our service, for the benefit of all Montrealers,” she said.
“Support” to reposition oneself
By email, the spokesperson for the transport company, Philippe Déry, clarified that “we accompany and support the employees who have left us according to industry standards”. “We offer them professional support to help them reposition themselves in the labor market,” he said, without going further on the terms of departure.
Mr. Déry maintains that “the organizational changes announced today will have the effect of reducing the payroll of the management committee by 8%. “The impact is minor on the entire STM payroll,” he specifies, however.
This all comes as the STM is, more than ever, looking for new funds to generate revenue. In November, when presenting its annual budget, the company announced a budget hole of 78 million, a significant increase from 43 million the previous year.
Earlier this week, Monday, the chairman of the board of directors, Eric Alan Caldwell, said he was still “looking for revenue” from his donors. That day, Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault announced the launch of a series of consultations in March to find solutions to the funding crisis. Quebec wants to “rationalize” spending and set up a five-year financing plan by the end of 2023. The idea of a new tax, however, seems excluded.
In Quebec, the shortfall is likely to reach 900 million within five years, revenue from users having fallen sharply during the pandemic. In all transport companies, a consensus is clearly emerging: the sources of income must be diversified.