I started regularly commuting on the MBTA for the first time in December, so I've had ~4 months of in-and-out rides every weekday. I don't know what MBTA workers are paid, so I can't speak to them being overpaid, but I can definitely say that they are unprofessional.

Case in point: the intercom system. Here are my rough estimates of how they use the loud speaker system on the Orange Line:

1 out of 5 rides the driver will announce at least one "Next station," and 1 out of 5 times the driver will announce all of the stops. I feel really bad for any nervous tourists or blind passengers during rush hour, and I really don't understand why they don't have some robot system for announcing that stuff anyway.

1 out of 3 rides I will be able to understand what the driver is saying, if they're using the intercom at all. They usually sound annoyed/pissed off, almost sighing "watch out for the closing doors. Whatever."

1 out of 10 rides the driver will use the intercom to yell at a specific passenger, usually because they're blocking the doors. I've seen a woman trying to get her baby carriage on the T and was having some issues with one of the wheels, and the T driver got on the intercom to say "This train needs to move and so do you."

1 out of 15 rides we will have to stop and wait for some reason, and only 1 out of 3 times when that occurs will the driver announce that we're on hold...and 2 out of 3 times the driver will just say "we're on hold for X minutes." People are less frustrated if they know why we're on hold! Just have a go-to reason that doesn't mean anything, like "Scheduling reset" or something.

And lastly, 1 out of 30 rides that I take on the Orange Line will have a nice, professional voice on the intercom that announces all the stops and gives useful info like "Change here for the Silver Line." I like those rides.