senior administrative assistant

bus driver

maintenance person

operations manager

project manager

TriMet

A person dedicates much time to invest in this company. A driver would need a savings, second job and about $170 for the CDL B permit/license. You will need to pass training (6 weeks) then survive Probation. I didn't.

I do love many aspects of this company. I enjoy many managers and co-workers, including most of the public. You can be an operator your entire career and benefits are bar none - especially is you hit the 3-year cap. With that said, customers are wonky, and the guidelines are strict (probation for example). Two preventable accidents, you are done. 

Some days you don't know if an angry customer is going to call to lie/complain or take it out on you (nature of the best). People just want to get to their destination and you are a bus driver. That's how some people treat you. Others will simply not pay their fare. It's not your job to enforce, just inform.Other days you make the difference in the lives you serve. 

You can be the lone wolf at work or you can be part of the clan. You get to see the best and worst of Portland, and that is open to your interpretation. People who work here have backgrounds ranging from mom to 21 year-old to lawyer to veteran; from all around the world. It's diverse and diversity is much welcomed and appreciated.

Your initial investments works the worst shifts with the least pay (think Part Time). Training pay isn't terrible; however, having a second job, savings, or roommates/spouse/partner will uplift your situation. Many new hires struggle, and its no joke. I was stressed about probation and now I know why, but there is the aspect of financial struggle or scheduling (as it is heavily seniority based) that really impacts your life for the first year or so.

There is a tremendous divide between Union and Company. I experienced that in my brief time here. Not just personal (which most of it was great) but when you are in the dog house, management becomes cold if not hostile. I guess that's why operators complain so much and they are pro-Union.

There is a reason why a Union represents you. 

If you decide to work here, or do work here, do yourself a favor and exercise. Get in shape. Maintain your fitness. There are way too many obese operators whose lives will be cut short or are impacted (Uniform Size 64" pants at the shop) because of the demand of the job. I don't judge my peers, I just worry and am saddened for them. We do have time for an hour or 30 mins into invest in ourselves. Be kind to others, be kind to yourself.

TriMet management is replete with nepotism, family connections, and DEI favoritism.  

The “Talent Management” at TriMet’s recruiting department serves primarily a “gatekeeping” function, prohibiting and restricting non-DEI employees access to entry-level management positions, and only secondarily actively recruits external new employees from the larger community.   Selected DEI individuals can easily enter entry-level management positions with no experience whatsoever based wholly on family connections and/or DEI preferences.  

Moreover, once the gatekeepers at Talent Management have targeted a non-DEI employee for either promotion restriction and/or employment retaliation, one’s ability to rise within the TriMet organization is entirely blocked, regardless of experience, education, or an otherwise successful employment history within the organization.  

Unfortunately, TriMet Talent Management gatekeepers surreptitiously weed out otherwise loyal and successful long-term employees who do not fit a DEI criteria, regardless of proven experience, management potential, or willingness to adapt to organizational culture.  

For example, screening criteria for entry-level management promotions are weighted with non-DEI candidates required to present a 15 slide PowerPoint presentation, via a Webex video conference, within a 5 minute time restriction, and with only a 48 hour opportunity to turn in the final digital product.  DEI candidates have no such requirement, nor is it required that they demonstrate proficiency at PowerPoint or video conferencing prior to being offered the entry-level management position. 

Lastly, TriMet Talent Management, specifically, engenders and facilitates an otherwise toxic organizational culture when they surreptitiously promote the inherently unfair and unequal application of selection criteria to their proven, non-DEI employees due solely to immutable characteristics.  
 

I was a FT bus operator for only 9 months before burning out. I went full time one month into probation. While this sounds great, it is very stressful. They can summarily terminate you for just about any infraction and with all the cameras and supervisors out there you are going to make tons of mistakes which, in the right hands can lead to termination. The risk management people are so ridiculous with the expectations. Things like you are never to talk to dispatch while the bus is in motion, or you are supposed to be 80% or better on time despite the fact that almost all the runs are scheduled around outdated traffic algorithms. Scheduling will tell you point blank they know the schedules are impossible. So guess who ends up paying the price 1: you the operator being stressed out constantly 2: the customer who is angry you are late 3: you again because this late time eats away at your scant breaks. 

As others here have pointed out, the probationary time is off-the-hook strict. Out of my class I am one of 7 who made it from an initial class of 20. 

The work-life balance is also a huge problem. Even if you dont have kids you will hate working here for the first year or two. PT work is not a lot better as they have you working all five days but only 5 hours per. I don't know who came up with these ridiculously outdated, rigid requirements. 

There is one last thing I want to warn you about. It is very cliquish. Alot of the old-timers are hostile and unfriendly towards new people for some reason. I am not sure. Reminds me a lot of high-school. Everything about the way you are treated is based on your badge number, so if you are a high number (new) you are going to be taken less seriously no matter how hard you work or professional you are. Everything from talking to dispatch to dealing with station agents. Its like a caste system.

It is hard to survive your first year there. I quit after three months. I had completed the training, which was grueling but excellent. I was driving my own routes and excited about it, and was looking forward to continuing to learn. I was proud of earning my CDL and even got a customer service commendation right off the bat! But the shifts they gave me were terrible part-time split shifts during peak commute times (5-8am and again from 4-6pm), and because I am a single parent, I could not make it work. I tried and tried and struggled half to death. But these are the standard shifts everyone gets at first and you are stuck with them for years, the drivers told me. We started out making $14/hr and I could not afford that much child care to work a split shift --those are the hours you have to get your kids to school and pick them up! If you don't have kids or your kids are grown or you have a stay at home spouse or grandparent willing to sit for free, you can probably hack it until you can get a decent shift. But if you are a single parent, fuggedaboutit. Also, you don't get any sick time or vacay for the first six months you are on probabtion, and also the Family Leave and Medical Act does not apply to you yet because you have to build up a certain number of hours before you can use it. So god help you if you get sick or your kid gets sick or your kid gets suspended or something. Oh, and during the nine months of training+probabtion, you can only be late or sick TWICE total. Brutal.

I started off in the maintenance department and had a blast. My coworkers were great, manager was great, our work flow was smooth and we all worked together. Then we had another sign up and I switched garages to be closer to home. I was met with a bunch of new, snotty, rude, lying little brats in my work crew and I couldn't escape them. They then went lying to the new manager about things I never did or said and he decided to try and begin the process of termination. Thank God for the union. I decided I had enough of the petty high school drama and moved to bus operator. The job is fun. Driving the buses is very enjoyable and my coworkers are all awesome, wonderful,. down to earth people. Anyone would be blessed to work with these great people. The management however is a different story. They don't care about drivers at all and will take any little lying complaint from a hostile public and stress you out even more. You have to go through the whole routine of explaining. There are plenty of managers who have never had the experience of being a city bus driver and can't possibly understand. They are too strict when they don't need to be and too relaxed in areas that needs more support. Overall, it is a good place to work, but like any place, has its pros and cons. Good pay, good benefits, terrific coworkers, often untrustworthy management, stuffy know nothing executives, sometimes hostile public.

Since about 2016 there has been a “revolving door” of management and other non-union positions. With each new regime comes new policies which rarely benefit or add value to frontline workers’ jobs. With the reduction in  transit police, frontline workers are more than ever at the mercy of the public’s behavior. Crime in the in Portland area overall has exploded since 2020, and many employees have had to bear the brunt of this. 
Office staff is now being subjected to backward think by “leadership.” While other large organizations and governments have embraced remote work as a means of cost efficiency, increased morale, and traffic reduction, those who have successfully been working remotely for nearly three years are being forced back to cramped offices right at the height of flu season and when an uptick in COVID-19 cases are expected. Such regressive policies plague TriMet and therefore I cannot recommend working there. 

As a 24/7 agency this job has a lot of schedule, work, and location flexibility. It pays well and has a good benefit and vacation package with excellent advancement opportunities. My time as a bus driver, light rail operator, and light rail controller has been a worthwhile venture for over 20 years combined. As an employee I felt valued and important to the company and my coworkers are great to work with. There is a multitude of jobs and different positions all throughout the company and the pay is competitive. It's a fast paced environment and customer service and safety are at the top of the list of priorities at TriMet. As a controller I have had the opportunity to see all the working parts of the company, good and bad. Mostly, though, working here is enjoyable despite the high stress that comes naturally with the job.

This place of employment was one of my favorite positions by far and I thought I would retire with this company. The probation period is very long, 7 1/2 months, with little room for family emergencies. I had a medical emergency occur while I was driving the bus that put me in the hospital and kept me out of work for four work days. This exhausted all of my allowed sick time for the probationary period plus extending the period for two days. Three months later when my children reported abuse by my ex husband I was forced into a court battle that required missing some work. I was told to resign from my position in order to take the time to protect my children from abuse. I was one month shy of six months so I did not qualify for the protections afforded to domestic violence victims and their families. The coldness the management showed me was very upsetting and that was when I began to question whether I wanted to work for an organization that doesn't take care of their employees in times of crisis. I was forced into resigning by a bully manager.

If you love driving, and are comfortable  interacting with the public, want to make $80k or more per year, then this might be the job for you. The trick with working in this industry is making sure you’re doing everything you can to be safe, and stay off the radar. If your manager doesn’t remember your name, then you’re probably doing something right. It’s not perfect, but I found my niche here. More than anything, I love the lifestyle the income provides. The amount of vacation and PTO we get makes for plenty of time to relax away from work. The retirement package is top-tier compared with other agencies, as we are provided with a 401-A. The district contributes 8% of your base pay ON TOP OF whatever you decide to contribute, and the result for me so far has been a very nice nest egg. Every industry has its ups and downs, so take it for what it is. Always understand that limiting liability is a big deal, so safety is paramount. Make it work for you, and you’ll do fine. 

A typical day started by wading through stacks of documents waiting for electronic filling, delivering those documents to my colleagues for review or action.  Ensuring that all the office equipment, supplies and kitchen were in good working order and adequately supplied.  
I also served my department by screening calls, scheduling meetings, providing documents and files on a moments notice.  
The hardest part of the job was the sheer enormity of documentation that the Orange Line transit product produced, and managing the complexity and time sensitive filing practices. 
The most enjoyable part of the job was the knowledge my team knew I was there for them, that they knew I had the drive, the know-how and sheer determination to help them get this project build and delivered on time.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Senior administrative assistant 1 salary reported	$32.40 per hour
Bus driver 1 salary reported	$35.26 per hour
Maintenance person 1 salary reported	$28.51 per hour
Operations manager 5 salaries reported	$128,625 per year
Project manager 1 salary reported	$127,546 per year

Working at TriMet: Company Overview and Reviews

TriMet

TriMet Ratings

Popular jobs at TriMet

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected