Page 12 - Work Force November 2020

Motor Vehicle License Examiner Lorraine Corcoran conducts a road test in the Buffalo area.
Continued from page 11.
perfect. “They are still getting the envelope and getting the results while you are still in the vicinity,” she said.
MVLEs hope the agency will launch a notification policy that would minimize the risks to MVLEs.
While CSEA was working with management to expedite the policy changes, the pandemic and subsequent lockdown may have played a role in delaying the process. Due to
the pandemic, road tests were postponed earlier this year. Now that MVLEs are back
at work, CSEA
and the workers are demanding a critical change that can make their work experience safer.
Doing their jobs
“We are not failing people because we don’t like them,” said Romeo. “I tell applicants we are not out to get you. We are just doing our job. We have guidelines we have to follow and [agency officials] check our work.”
Destine agreed that “we have to change the public view of us. We are regular people that are just trying to do a job and give a fair test and
the conditions of the job make it difficult to do, day in and day out.”
While physical altercations happen on occasion, Romeo said verbal abuse from the public is usually more frequent, especially for female workers, yet he opts to think of the rewards.
“It’s not a boring job,” said Romeo. I like working with the public and like to see their faces when they pass.”
Roland Poles, a motor vehicle license examiner based in the
Rochester area, said the MVLE job comes with a mix of jubilation and heartbreak.
“It’s extremely satisfying to see clients so joyful when they pass the driver’s license exam,” said Poles. “However, we always have to
be on guard when things don’t meet their expectations. Better communication by DMV to clients prior to the exam on exactly
what to expect and to have the proper documentation with them beforehand would diffuse a lot of tense situations we experience. In the end, we are just trying to keep the traveling public safe.”
— David Galarza and Ove Overmyer
From left, Yolanda Ruiz, Joseph Bermudez and Giaminh Dao, MVLEs assigned to DMV’s Queens Testing and investigation Unit, prepare to go out on the job.
A motor vehicle license examiner in New York City gives a test-taker road test results.
12 The Work Force
November 2020
“We have to change the public view of us. We are regular people that are just trying to do a job and give a fair test and the conditions of the job make it difficult to do, day in and day out.”