With winter on the horizon, Worcester offering bonuses for snowplow drivers

WORCESTER — With winter on the horizon, the City of Worcester said this week that it needs more than 100 committed snowplow drivers to meet its operational goal for clearing the streets.

Department of Public Works and Parks Commissioner Jay Fink said Worcester is not alone in possibly running short of resources this winter and in past winters.

"Folks need to understand that maybe years gone by, there was a certain response time or certain expectation and the current expectations need to be adjusted a bit to recognize that it may take a little bit longer to clear the streets," Fink said.

Every year, the city recruits contractors to serve as additional snowplow drivers.

Contractors who sign onto being snowplow drivers by Friday will be eligible for a perfect attendance signing bonus. Those who sign up on time and show up for every storm are paid an additional $1,000 or up to $2,000 for drivers who own large equipment.

Marlborough is another city that offered bonuses for snowplow contractors and equipment. Interested candidates needed to send in their applications by Nov. 3 to be eligible for signing bonuses.

According to the application form on the city's website, the hourly rate for plow drivers ranges from $100 to $189, depending upon the plowing equipment the driver uses.

Fink said late Wednesday afternoon that about 190 pieces of equipment are committed for the winter so far and the city would like to have more than 300.

"I do suspect that before the end of the week, we're going to have a number of other folks finishing up their paperwork and getting it in here," Fink said.

In addition, Fink said, construction companies have not yet experienced much hard frost, so many of their workers are still on site.

While it is a little too soon to know what equipment availability will look like, Fink said the city is not "completely worried" about whether it will have enough pieces of equipment to get through the winter, even if it might end up a bit short of the target number.

Fink said it seems like the demand for drivers has been higher than the number of available drivers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and municipalities have had to compete with the trucking and shipping industries in a time of increased home deliveries.

"The end result is both the city and the private contractors that work for the city in snowplowing efforts, we're seeing a reduction of available drivers to man the equipment. Some contractors have the equipment. They just do not have the drivers to man the equipment," Fink said.

Last winter, Fink said, the city was spared a bit due to below-average snowfall. The department is preparing in case accumulation is heavier in the upcoming winter.

"Mother nature has a way of averaging things out, so my anticipation is that while we were a little light last year, it's going to be a little heavier this year," Fink said.

During winter, Fink said, residents may want to prepare to leave a bit earlier when driving to work in anticipation of rougher road conditions when it snows.

Municipalities are still fighting inflation and associated supply and cost issues, Fink said. He added that cities are still in a time of adjustment to what may be the new economic norms after the height of the pandemic.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester short of snowplow drivers, offering bonuses