People might be asking themselves, “What is this program being run by a transportation company?” The Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) “Second Chance Program” is a nationally acknowledged initiative that offers useful job skills along with career opportunities, to residents of Chicago who are frequently experiencing difficulties when trying to rejoin the work force.
The “Second Chance Program” embraces a comprehensive strategy in equipping individuals for self-sufficiency. Not only does it provide employment to returning citizens, abuse victims and other individuals who encounter employment barriers.
What Requirements Are Needed To Qualify?
To be eligible for CTA’s second chance program, job seeker those interested in participating must:
- Live within the city of Chicago.
- Be at least the age of 18 or older.
- Complete weeks of Job Readiness Training and acquire a certificate of completion (if recommended by one of CTA’s social agency partners).
Applicants for the Second Chance Program must be discharged from the following:
- Substance abuse rehabilitation program.
- Center for work release.
CTA Program Lacks Long Lasting Jobs
Although this “Second Chance” program intended to help many, an investigation found that only a few ex-convicts are actually enrolled. Instead, the majority of Second Chance participants find themselves continuously re-enrolled for second, third, and occasionally even fourth terms as the transit agency’s lowest-paid employees, all amidst a worker shortage that has led to reduced bus and rail services. Participants only make $15.80 on an hourly basis and are only allowed to work a maximum of 40 hours per week.
Chicago Transit Authority
Flickr Page CCO
Starting from 2011 reports have found that the CTA has only advanced 14% of it apprenticeship participants into full-time positions. These full time positions offer benefits such as compensated sick days and health insurance.
Throughout that period, the organization has opted to extend the tenure of 26% of its apprentices longer than 12 months. As a result of this some of the apprentices staying in the program for over thee years.
Are Promises Not Being Kept?
Second Chance seeks to provide individuals with criminal records and other employment obstacles an avenue to acquire job skills through cleaning bus and L car interiors. Nonetheless some ex-apprentices expressed that they feel exploited by the agency.
Gregory Dixon, who served as an apprentice for over two years, primarily stationed at the Kimball Avenue CTA station yard cleaning trains overnight expressed that “they’re using us. They use us to do the little stuff. When I was working at Kimball, they had me training people. I trained some of them, a lot of them, on how to clean the train. And I’m still without a job,” said Dixon who is the father of two preschool students, expresses that he is now without a job after unsuccessfully applying to over 15 jobs.
Although the CTA agency boasts about its “Second Chance Program,” for contributing to “hundreds of people turn their lives around and provide for their families.” On the other hand, the CTA payroll records display that amidst May 2011 and November 2023 there were 1,953 people listed as apprentices. However, only 282 of them had been hired for permanent jobs. Furthermore, the CTA touts about how their program helps “hundreds.” However, the company doesn’t speak about the hundreds that same program leaves without a stable job.
Pleads For Protections
The unions who represent CTA bus and L workers are advocating for a revision of the program’s regulations to provide better protection for the apprentices. These same apprentices frequently preform the same work as full-time L and bus workers. However they only receive half of the pay and they occasionally end up tasked with hazardous assignments. In addition to this, as stated by a union official, they faced to a higher level of discipline.
Eric Basir who is a member of the executive board of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 308, stated that “Managers are very abusive and take advantage of these people.” Basir who also has advocated for substantial reforms to the program, also stated “this is a slave-making program.” Currently, there are 315 CTA manager positions. But yet interviews regarding the program were not made available for not one of those managers.
Written by: Jaliyah Triplett
Sources:
Chicago Sun-Times: Afternoon Edition: Is CTA’s ‘Second Chance’ program off track? by Matt Moore
Chicago Sun-Times: CTA promotes its ‘Second Chance’ initiative for former offenders, yet only a small number secure long-term employment by and
CTA: Second Chance Program
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Daniel Lobo Flickr Page- Public Domain License
Inset Image Courtesy of Chicago Transit Authority Flickr Page- Creative Commons License
