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Toronto-Age |OT2|

Fired because they don't like him and not job performance, if only Webster could sue for wrongful dismissal lol

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a dumb idea to spend hundreds of millions to fire a guy who articulates an informed opinion. If they were going to fire him, it should have been both he and Stintz who got the axe and it should have been before the council meeting that kneecapped Ford's subway dream. If you're going to try to control your message, don't do it half-assed, something something.

But all HR firings are done behind closed doors. You don't discriminate based on the cause.
 
Don't get me wrong, I think it's a dumb idea to spend hundreds of millions to fire a guy who articulates an informed opinion. If they were going to fire him, it should have been both he and Stintz who got the axe and it should have been before the council meeting that kneecapped Ford's subway dream. If you're going to try to control your message, don't do it half-assed, something something.

But all HR firings are done behind closed doors. You don't discriminate based on the cause.

*Hundreds of thousands



"Act 1 ended Tuesday with the firing of TTC chief general manager Gary Webster, terminated, as the approved motion states, “without just cause,” meaning he will be paid to stay home for up two years, at $$281,931 a year. His contract was to end July 2013; by firing him he gets compensation for a longer period.

The 5-4 vote came after a three-hour private session of the transit commission, where the five councillors loyal to Mayor Rob Ford did the firing. When they emerged from the session they all had wonderful things to say about the doomed bureaucrat.

“Performance was not an issue,” said one of the assassins, Councillor Frank DiGiorgio, and the gathered citizens nodded. Excellence, in a bureaucrat, he said, is putting “forward positions consistent with the position being proposed by the mayor.” "


Terminated without just cause
 
If city lawyers haven't gone through the contract to be sure of that, Ralph Wiggum is in charge.

That would make sense. Rob Ford kinda looks like Chief Wiggum anyway.


Toronto photo of the day:

6886323619_9a623a1785_b.jpg
 

Dyno

Member
Terminated without just cause

I'm actually a bit torn on this one. On one hand Webster was fired for the wrong reasons and General Gravy has once again proven to be a money-eating hypocrite. On the other hand the TTC has not been run all that well and we can lay that at this guy's feet. This is the guy who was getting "fed up" when the public was taking pictures of sleeping employees. Morale has been shit, there hasn't been any inovation or improvement for years, and the TTC has gone pretty dingy on this guy's watch.

It's cynical to say but after 35 years we have probably squeezed that bureaucrat dry. I doubt he had anything fresh or new to offer. It might be possible to get an improvement out of this.
 

EvilMario

Will QA for food.
I'm actually a bit torn on this one. On one hand Webster was fired for the wrong reasons and General Gravy has once again proven to be a money-eating hypocrite. On the other hand the TTC has not been run all that well and we can lay that at this guy's feet. This is the guy who was getting "fed up" when the public was taking pictures of sleeping employees. Morale has been shit, there hasn't been any inovation or improvement for years, and the TTC has gone pretty dingy on this guy's watch.

It's cynical to say but after 35 years we have probably squeezed that bureaucrat dry. I doubt he had anything fresh or new to offer. It might be possible to get an improvement out of this.

What's the alternative though? If they presented someone new they wanted to bring in, to improve performance out of the position, I'd be open to listening to it. They just gave him the axe because he refused to follow their policy though, and they probably don't have someone nearly as qualified to take his place. They just want a Ford lacky in there to do whatever Ford wants, not based on sound advice from experience urban planners and transit experts.
 

Azih

Member
Most places, when they want to improve customer service, spend more money and provide more training or better equipment or whatever. Slashing costs and cutting funding isn't really the way to do it.

In any case service on the TTC has improved over the past few years. it wasn't that long ago that station arrivals weren't announced even on the subway line but now every bus stop is. It also wasn't that long ago that there were no announcements at all when there was a service breakdown. Now every time there's a delay there's at least some explanation ending with a "sorry for the inconvenience". It's easy to overlook stuff like this but I don't think we should. I imagine it takes a massive amount of work to get some of these seemingly simple things accomplished and it can't be easy with the shit funding that the TTC objectively gets.
 

Zzoram

Member
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Meet at this Tim Hortons at 3pm.
 
I'm actually a bit torn on this one. On one hand Webster was fired for the wrong reasons and General Gravy has once again proven to be a money-eating hypocrite. On the other hand the TTC has not been run all that well and we can lay that at this guy's feet. This is the guy who was getting "fed up" when the public was taking pictures of sleeping employees. Morale has been shit, there hasn't been any inovation or improvement for years, and the TTC has gone pretty dingy on this guy's watch.

It's cynical to say but after 35 years we have probably squeezed that bureaucrat dry. I doubt he had anything fresh or new to offer. It might be possible to get an improvement out of this.

Anyone working in a position long enough is going to have a list of "cons" along with the list of "pros" that they've accumulated over their tenure. Ultimately, if they're firing him without just cause, the board finds that his list of pros outweighs the cons, but they're going to fire him before his contract is up anyway.

So now, Toronto remains in desperate need of expanded transit services, our vindictive mayor has demonstrated that if he can't have his way, nobody can, and in three years we're going to have a major Games come to town - complete with another 20,000 athletes, officials, coaches, and volunteers, not to mention tourists - and we're already at capacity. And what's more, we don't have a guy at the helm to steer the ship.

We have set ourselves up to be a global embarrassment. Again.

I love this city but seriously, the unwillingness of our political leadership to actually live up to their name and work to provide a long-standing vision for Toronto is nothing short of insane. I'd like to have something to defend when people spit at me because I live here.

If I didn't have anything to lose (my sanity, for example) I might make a run for Mayor myself.
 

whitehawk

Banned
Just a thought: When we finally set the date + place for the meetup, should we post the details in email codes so lurkers don't come?
 
Reading that TTC and Ford article actually makes me depressed. I may just have to stop paying attention to it. I wish the leaders of Toronto and Ontario would stop fucking with us and arguing about transit plans and just start building things. It's been this way as long as I can remember even going back to the Mike Harris days.
It's obvious that even if an LRT plan goes ahead, that if the conservatives win the next provincial election, then they will just cancel it and we will get nothing again.


Toronto photo of the day:

toronto001.jpg
 

Roto13

Member
Reading that TTC and Ford article actually makes me depressed. I may just have to stop paying attention to it. I wish the leaders of Toronto and Ontario would stop fucking with us and arguing about transit plans and just start building things. It's been this way as long as I can remember even going back to the Mike Harris days.
It's obvious that even if an LRT plan goes ahead, that if the conservatives win the next provincial election, then they will just cancel it and we will get nothing again.


Toronto photo of the day:

toronto001.jpg

Preeeeettttttyyyyyy
 

Divvy

Canadians burned my passport
Reading that TTC and Ford article actually makes me depressed. I may just have to stop paying attention to it. I wish the leaders of Toronto and Ontario would stop fucking with us and arguing about transit plans and just start building things. It's been this way as long as I can remember even going back to the Mike Harris days.
It's obvious that even if an LRT plan goes ahead, that if the conservatives win the next provincial election, then they will just cancel it and we will get nothing again.


Toronto photo of the day:

toronto001.jpg

Crazy how much the skyline has expanded in the last few decades.
 
So, Bob Rob and Doug are getting their own 2 hour weekly radio show...

http://www.thestar.com/news/cityhal...ford-and-brother-doug-to-host-radio-show?bn=1

If only it weren't about politics. It could be amusing.


Like any radio show they'll just screen out all the callers that want to oppose the mayor with legitimate concerns and keep the calls limited to those who support the Fords and the batshit crazies who will make the opposition look bad

Maybe they'll surprise me and listen to dissenting opinions
 
Like any radio show they'll just screen out all the callers that want to oppose the mayor with legitimate concerns and keep the calls limited to those who support the Fords and the batshit crazies who will make the opposition look bad

Maybe they'll surprise me and listen to dissenting opinions

Any call more complex than "You're doing a great job!" is going to be scripted well in advance and called-in by a toady. That can be nearly guaranteed. Rob Ford can't think on his feet, and needs to have his answers prepared ahead of time. That's why you see him stand up in council and spew tons of hot air, but when confronted with an actual question he starts stammering and just repeats simple campaign phrases like "respect for taxpayers" and "it's all about subways" over and over.
 
Like any radio show they'll just screen out all the callers that want to oppose the mayor with legitimate concerns and keep the calls limited to those who support the Fords and the batshit crazies who will make the opposition look bad

Maybe they'll surprise me and listen to dissenting opinions

"Everyone that calls in wants subways!"
 
Any call more complex than "You're doing a great job!" is going to be scripted well in advance and called-in by a toady. That can be nearly guaranteed. Rob Ford can't think on his feet, and needs to have his answers prepared ahead of time. That's why you see him stand up in council and spew tons of hot air, but when confronted with an actual question he starts stammering and just repeats simple campaign phrases like "respect for taxpayers" and "it's all about subways" over and over.

Thats why Doug will be on the show as well

I mean, Rob Ford is the mayor, why put another councilor on the air with him?
 

explodet

Member
http://www.thestar.com/news/cityhal...r-on-parking-tax-to-fund-sheppard-subway?bn=1
For the first time since launching his subway crusade more than a year ago, Mayor Rob Ford has signaled he is willing to use modest taxation to pay for construction. Specifically, he has indicated he is open to implementing a parking levy, which KPMG consultants estimate could bring in more than $90 million annually.

Exactly what Ford has in mind isn’t clear, but members of his inner circle say what has been discussed is a per-space fee, which would be passed on to owners of large parking lots — malls and movie theatres, which typically offer free parking, as well as pay lots. For the latter, the added cost would probably be passed on to drivers. Ideally, the strategy would be implemented across the GTA, so there isn’t a situation where parking lots on the city limits struggle to compete.

An actual PLAN?
SimpsonsSpit-Take.jpg
 

Prax

Member
^ I dunno.. sounds like a WAR ON CARS to me. >___>
He's a traitor. Get 'im.


Give me my Jane LRT plans back. ;___;
 
I guess the good thing about this is... it'll all have to go through council. If they somehow decide that a fully funded LRT is a better idea than taxing and tolls for a subway, Ford loses again.
 

grumble

Member
He does have a point in that in the long term, the LRTs aren't a good replacement for subways; the issue here is that in the medium term, we don't have the money.

I'm all for making toronto less car-friendly and using tolls, taxes etc to pump money into other areas like improved transit, but the suburbs (who are frankly different communities) would never allow it.
 

Rinoa

Member
Doubt it, Ford supporters are fat car drivers like him..

In other Ford BS news, whatever happened to getting rid of the land transfer tax?
 

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
Doubt it, Ford supporters are fat car drivers like him..

In other Ford BS news, whatever happened to getting rid of the land transfer tax?
"We need to raise money to build my subways, let's cut our revenue by getting rid of the land transfer tax."

It makes perfect sense to Ford. Good thing he got rid of that pesky $65 million a year from the car tax.
 
NO STOPPING.. EVER!

Why not just pave over all of Toronto and turn us into a major superduper highway to get from one suburb to the next? >___>

They tried to do that in the '60s. They wanted to put a big expressway down Spadina, and another one through The Beaches.
 
He does have a point in that in the long term, the LRTs aren't a good replacement for subways; the issue here is that in the medium term, we don't have the money.

I'm all for making toronto less car-friendly and using tolls, taxes etc to pump money into other areas like improved transit, but the suburbs (who are frankly different communities) would never allow it.

Or the population density in the areas in which he wants to put subways. It's not just about money.
 

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
I have a random worry about investing too heavily in transportation. In 20/30 years or less, what are the odds of something like... self driving vehicles replacing public Trans?
 

Willectro

Banned
Anyone know of any decent bars/pubs, preferably downtown, that will be showing UFC 144 this weekend?

I went to Wild Wing(Queen West and University) and Boston Pizza (Front St and John) for the last 2 events. The staff at both places were absolutely terrible. Completely ruined the experience.
 
Anyone know of any decent bars/pubs, preferably downtown, that will be showing UFC 144 this weekend?

I went to Wild Wing(Queen West and University) and Boston Pizza (Front St and John) for the last 2 events. The staff at both places were absolutely terrible. Completely ruined the experience.


Its not all the way downtown but Boston Pizza at Yonge and Eglinton is ok for UFC, same with Philthy McNastys but they charge cover


What kind of experience are you looking for? Does it have to be downtown? If not, WEGZ up in Maple is pretty good for it, but they get insanely busy.........

Keep in mind that the lame ass NBA skill competition will be on at the same time and there could be people at bars demanding they put it on some of the tvs......and some bars might actually cave and do it

http://www.canadastarboxing.com/index.html

Thats the site that lists all the bars showing it.........but the site has been under construction for the past few months =/
 

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
Its not all the way downtown but Boston Pizza at Yonge and Eglinton is ok for UFC, same with Philthy McNastys but they charge cover


What kind of experience are you looking for? Does it have to be downtown? If not, WEGZ up in Maple is pretty good for it, but they get insanely busy.........

Keep in mind that the lame ass NBA skill competition will be on at the same time and there could be people at bars demanding they put it on some of the tvs......and some bars might actually cave and do it

http://www.canadastarboxing.com/index.html

Thats the site that lists all the bars showing it.........but the site has been under construction for the past few months =/
That's an understatement about Wegz.
 

Kave_Man

come in my shame circle
Its not all the way downtown but Boston Pizza at Yonge and Eglinton is ok for UFC, same with Philthy McNastys but they charge cover


What kind of experience are you looking for? Does it have to be downtown? If not, WEGZ up in Maple is pretty good for it, but they get insanely busy.........

Keep in mind that the lame ass NBA skill competition will be on at the same time and there could be people at bars demanding they put it on some of the tvs......and some bars might actually cave and do it

http://www.canadastarboxing.com/index.html

Thats the site that lists all the bars showing it.........but the site has been under construction for the past few months =/

Heathen, how dare you speak ill of the skills comp. I'd thrash you if I remembered the number of your house. :p

I went to the autoshow last night, first time I've ever been. Was pretty nice.

Apparently I was a huge fool too. My buddies were certain one of the female attedants there for Volkswagon was flirting hard with me. I figured she was just being nice and doing her job. They think I was wrong.

My only option now is to go back everyday and present her a heroic crown of sonnets in the hopes she'll date me.
 
Apparently I was a huge fool too. My buddies were certain one of the female attedants there for Volkswagon was flirting hard with me. I figured she was just being nice and doing her job. They think I was wrong.

OH YOU!



Keep in mind that the lame ass NBA skill competition will be on at the same time and there could be people at bars demanding they put it on some of the tvs......and some bars might actually cave and do it

The NBA skills competition is pretty lame... but it's not up at the UFC level of lame.
 
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