Jean Guy Martial of ATU Local 1056 hasn’t been on the job as a Bus Operator for very long, compared to some others, yet he has already shown that he has the mettle to not only perform his job at a high level, but to deal with emergency situations in a timely and effective manner.
LaborPress was able to speak with him about how he earned his position, what his aspirations are, and hear about the story of his heroism that saved the life of a two-year-old child.
LP: How long have you been on the job?
JGM: Since January 16, 2022.
LP: What did you do before you joined the Local?
JGM: I drove a school bus, with Jofaz.
LP: Jofaz is a private bus company, based in Brooklyn, on Coffey Street, correct?
JGM: Yes.
LP: How long did you work for them?
JGM: About four years. Originally, when I was trying to work for the MTA, I didn’t know the difference between the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (MaBSTOA), the Transit Authority (TA), which has routes in Queens, and the MTA buses. When I came in, that’s when they told me there’s a difference. Later on, I got the call from the MTA, and I took the exam and passed. I worked from the Spring Creek depot in Brooklyn, so I was starting with the MTA bus. Then I took the exam for driving for the TA – New York City Transit, because I had moved to Long Island, and the Queens routes were better because I could be closer to my job.
LP: At what age did you become a bus driver?
JGM: 27 years old.
LP: Do you like your job?
JGM: Yes, I like it. That’s something I wanted to do, and I don’t want to stop myself at being a bus driver, I want to become a dispatcher too. That’s something I dream about.
LP: How many hours per day is your shift in Queens, currently?
JGM: Sometimes ten, eleven hours.
LP: That’s a long day.
JGM: Yes, I can start at 4 pm and go ‘til 1 or 2 am.
LP: What have you gotten out of your union membership?
JGM: The union is really helpful. It’s always there whenever you call, no matter the time, they’re going to take care of you.
LP: Now that you’ve given us some background about your career, tell us about your heroic story where you saved a child’s life. When did that happen?
JGM: It happened July 28th, 2024, in the evening, around 7 pm.
LP: And where?
JGM: 173rd Street in Queens. I was driving the Q17, going towards Jamaica. I saw a kid coming down in front of the bus. I stopped, put my hazard light on – especially since the road is like a highway, and the drivers are going mad fast. This way they go around, and God forbid, don’t hit the kid. I had some time. I got out, and went to the child. He only had a diaper on, and was going towards the bus, and was about two years old. I asked him where his parents were. But he couldn’t answer, he wasn’t even talking yet. I brought him into the bus, then pulled the bus further over to the side of the street. I had to call command and tell them about the situation, and they called EMS, and then they called the cops.
But before that, the passengers in the bus, after I brought him in, were saying, ‘don’t give the kid to anyone [‘til the police arrive], we’re going to get off and take another bus.’ And they said, ‘that was really great of you, you’ve got really good eyes, anybody could have hit the kid.’ I’m like, ‘You know, you got to pay attention while you’re driving.’
We had to wait three hours to find out where the parents were. It seems the mom went to work and left the kid with the babysitter. It turned out the parents and kid lived only two blocks away.
After that heroic moment which happened only months ago, and was a combination of vigilance on the job and quick thinking, as well as caring about a child in the most active way, Jean Guy Martial has something to celebrate. Besides being awarded LaborPress’ 2024 Heroes of Labor Award, he and his wife have just celebrated the birth of his first child, a baby boy.
