CDTA Exec And Nypta Board Member Ray Melleady Selected For International Workforce Development Mission

ALBANY, NY—Raymond Melleady, executive director of the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) in Albany, N.Y. and a member of the Board of Directors of the New York Public Transit Association, has been chosen as one of thirteen national transit industry professionals to participate in a two-week workforce development international study mission this November, provided through the Eno Transportation Foundation.

While visiting transit organizations in Canada and Europe, the mission team will learn how leaders outside the U.S. are addressing critical challenges in recruitment, retention and training of skilled transit workers. This is the 27th educational mission organized by the International Transit Studies Programs, sponsored by the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) and funded by the Federal Transit Administration of the US Department of Transportation.  “I consider it a privilege to be chosen as part of this workforce study mission,” said Melleady. “Workforce challenges in the transit industry have reached a critical level, and I hope to contribute to the solution through this international research.”  Upon return, the team will present a paper on their workforce development and retention findings to be published in a TCRP synthesis document and used as a practical solutions guide for the transit community.   

Melleady, a proponent of workforce development initiatives, was instrumental in launching the Project Empire Transit Career Ladder Partnership, a joint labor-management statewide partnership between CDTA, the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority in Syracuse and the Amalgamated Transit Union Locals 1321 (Albany) and 580 (Syracuse). This program enhances training and skill building in public transportation across the state.  It was established to address the chronic shortage of transit industry workforce skills due to pervasive technological change, increasing retirement of skilled workers and rapid transit industry growth.

Workforce development is also the focus of the New York State Public Transit Industry’s 2007 conference, chaired by Melleady. The conference, held on November 14-16 at the Holiday Inn in Albany, entitled “Investing in the Human Side of Transit,” will feature keynote speaker former U.S. Labor Secretary Ray Marshall.  Marshall is leading the strategic planning project for labor-management approaches to training and high performance in public transportation.  Outside business and community leaders interested in workforce and economic development are invited to attend. 

Additional information on the workforce development study mission can be found at the Eno Transportation Foundation website at www.enotrans.com. For more information on Project Empire Transit Career Ladder Program and other CDTA initiatives, visit www.cdta.org.  For more information on the New York Public Transit Industry 2007 Fall conference, visit www.nytransit.org.

---

Click an icon below to link this article to the social bookmarking site of your choice.