Sep 11, 2007 7:44 pm US/Central
CTA Employees Steel Themselves For Coming Layoffs
Bus Driver Says She'll Have To Rely On Her 'Personal Hustle'
by Vince Gerasole
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Devonia Madison, the head of her household, is about to lose her job wih the CTA.
CBS
The CTA is warning that service cuts and fare increases take effect on Sunday, unless Springfield comes to the rescue.
All this week we're showing the impact this will all have on regular people.
With the countdown to cutbacks at five days, CBS 2's Vince Gerasole introduces us to a bus driver about to lose her job.
All through the town bus operator Devonia Madison says more than "move on back."
"If someone's grandchild is putting in a fare I still say 'good morning sir,'" she said. "You let everybody know they're appreciated. You get back what you put out that's the bottom line -- some people want to call it karma."
Madison has been a part-time CTA driver for almost a year. She gave birth to son, Josh, on her last day of training in January.
"I came back to work and I never missed a day outside of that," she said.
The head of her household and making roughly $17 an hour, Madison's the kind of driver who will hail down another bus when her wheelchair ramp won't work.
Next week she's scheduled to lose her job.
"I am apprehensive because I do want to work; I have to work," Madison said. "It's not like they are laying us off because we are incompetent. They are laying us off because they don't have the funding."
Madison isn't alone. The CTA is eliminating some 600 positions, from bus operators to mechanics, all as part of its doomsday scenario.
To navigate through the bumpy road ahead Madison plans to rely on what she calls her "personal hustle to get by.
"I've laid carpet before, drywall; I've even done hair to make sure my son has what he needs," she said.
She is hopeful a return to the CTA is just around the bend.
"It's amazing to see people kind of network and to me it's a way of transporting a community, Madison said. "It's one big city and we're all tied together."
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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