The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) will ultimately have to eliminate 255 positions to balance its next budget, more than double what it estimated it would have to do in mid-November. Its shortfall also increases from 36 to 47 million.
“A 5% reduction in payroll is part of the measures to achieve our objective,” confirmed STM corporate advisor Amélie Régis on Friday, specifying that this will correspond to 255 positions that will be subject to cuts.
Two weeks ago, The Press had revealed that the STM was planning to eliminate some 120 positions, more than half as many as what is currently reported. The operator then mentioned a reduction in its expenses of around 50 million so as not to have to reduce service in the metro and buses.
This position was, however, taken before the budget of the Regional Metropolitan Transport Authority (ARTM), which sets the revenues of transport companies in the metropolitan region. This was finally done last week, on November 23. Result: the revenues of transport companies will increase on average by 3.2% next year.
In short, the STM had to review its position. The news was announced to employees on Wednesday by the company’s general director, Marie-Claude Léonard.
In the municipal committee on Friday, the city’s general manager, Serge Lamontagne, also confirmed that the STM’s shortfall will increase by 11 million under the ARTM budget. The transport company previously expected to maintain a shortfall of 35.6 million, which means that this figure will now reach around 46.6 million.
“The past is a guarantor of the future. And we must remember that the STM budget in 2023 had a deficit of 78 million,” explained Mr. Lamontagne, judging the situation “relatively secure”.
It is still unclear whether the spending cuts will remain the same, at 50 million. During its first plan, in mid-November, the STM mentioned that 30 of these 50 million would affect the elimination of 120 employees, which suggests that this expense could now be expected to increase.
Several employees worried
In a press release issued Thursday, the Union of Administrative, Technical and Professional Personnel of the STM (CUPE 2850) said it was “deeply concerned by this announcement”, since it believes that “these cuts will mainly affect its members” .
“Our main objective remains to minimize the impact of these changes on our union members as well as on the quality of services provided to the community,” explained the president of the union group, Stéphane Lamont, who deplores that no official plan has been made. yet been communicated to staff members.
A meeting has nevertheless been planned with management next week to discuss “this restructuring plan” in more detail.
“It is important for us to preserve not only jobs, but also the quality of service offered to the public, despite the financial challenges encountered. We are also aware that we must consider the broader context of this issue, in particular the ongoing standoff concerning the financing of transport companies between Quebec and the municipalities,” added Mr. Lamont.
The numbers show it, researchers say
In a study by the Center on Productivity and Prosperity at HEC Montréal published this week, which highlights higher costs for Quebec carriers compared to Canada, we also learn that the share of drivers and other transport-related jobs remains high. Barely 50% in Montreal compared to paid working hours.
“That means that there are also a lot of hours for maintenance and general administration, more than elsewhere in any case,” explains one of the study’s researchers, Robert Gagné, who does not is “not surprised” to see that the STM will double its number of cuts in this sector.
His group, also made up of researchers Jonathan Deslauriers, Anne-Gabrielle Gendron and Jonathan Paré, deplores that the STM questioned the methodology of the study this week, even though the figures were analyzed from several perspectives.
By excluding debt service, “we arrive at the same figure as the STM, or $6.87” per kilometer, says Mr. Gagné. “Even excluding the cost of servicing the debt for all Canadian companies, the conclusion remains the same: Quebec transport companies are more expensive than comparable organizations in Canada,” he notes.
Certainly, Vancouver ($7.63) and Toronto ($7.36) cost more when excluding debt, “but it is important to put the report in context: the study does not focus on the STM specifically, but on all Quebec transport companies,” concludes Mr. Gagné. The observation, according to him, remains very clear: “there are important issues regarding the efficiency of transport companies”.