Bus drivers call in... leave kids at school

[Brandon]

All I got out of it was the drivers are upset with the state for wanting unemployment benefits back since the new law that was passed saying seasonal workers can't collect when they are not working. Looks like some managed to get a couple thousand dollars somehow while others only got a couple hundred dollars.

 

[Denny347]

All I got out of it was the drivers are upset with the state for wanting unemployment benefits back since the new law that was passed saying seasonal workers can't collect when they are not working. Looks like some managed to get a couple thousand dollars somehow while others only got a couple hundred dollars.

Ahhh, I see. The change seems logical.

 

[Indy317]

The school should have a substitute bus driver on hand to things like this. What if the driver had a family emergency and couldn't run the afternoon route?

The drivers here have the power. Thanks to government regulation, I believe a special driver's license must be obtained to operate a school bus. Not only that, if the company is doing their job, they are doing quarterly license checks to make sure the driver's all hold valid licenses and no one has been suspended. Go ahead and fire all off them, immediately. Maybe there are thousands of people with the special license just waiting to get a job?

 

[GBuck]

Fire them. They're in a position where they know the rules of the game. The company nor the school corporation made this decision. Fire them.

 

[Brandon]

As stated above, you need a class b cdl with public passengers and school bus endorsements to drive a school bus. Most have air brakes so you would need that as well. Also to get hired the background checks, a dot physical, drug test.

I don't think they will get fired anytime soon, but I have the feeling that they will be slowly let go or at the end of the year when they have enough time to find and train new people.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

We had the option to take pay on a 21 or 26 period schedule, so we could be paid all summer. Maybe they didn't have that, but these schmucks knew the situation they were getting into and should have planned.

Yes, B-CDL with public passenger, then the "S" school bus endorsement came around a few years ago, but if you'd already been driving you could be grandfathered in. They're all diesel now, and with the possible exception of the really small ones, all of them have air brakes. You take your CDL test with a big one either way, so you have to have it. You also have to do an annual "safety meeting" (which is now online) to get your yellow card for the year, and of course the random pee tests, biannual physical, and now the background check has to be updated every 5 years.

 

[long coat]

We had the option to take pay on a 21 or 26 period schedule, so we could be paid all summer. Maybe they didn't have that, but these schmucks knew the situation they were getting into and should have planned.

Yes, B-CDL with public passenger, then the "S" school bus endorsement came around a few years ago, but if you'd already been driving you could be grandfathered in. They're all diesel now, and with the possible exception of the really small ones, all of them have air brakes. You take your CDL test with a big one either way, so you have to have it. You also have to do an annual "safety meeting" (which is now online) to get your yellow card for the year, and of course the random pee tests, biannual physical, and now the background check has to be updated every 5 years.

Sounds like you work for the school, they didn't work for the school.

 

[theweakerbrother]

Is it the state's job to shuttle your children or is it yours?

 

[Brandon]

The yellow card (blue for rookies who haven't made it to the 3 day course) thing is pretty much a joke if you ask me.

 

[hornadylnl]

The yellow card (blue for rookies who haven't made it to the 3 day course) thing is pretty much a joke if you ask me.

It makes someone feel better or it wouldn't exist.

 

[churchmouse]

It makes someone feel better or it wouldn't exist.

Someone is being paid to test you. Just like refrigerant certification. It is a worthless piece of paper ( I have 3 of them ) but someone has a job to take the fee and grade your test. Nothing more.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

The yellow card is basically a receipt showing you've been through the annual meeting, which is a requirement to be eligible to drive.

 

[Brandon]

The yellow card is basically a receipt showing you've been through the annual meeting, which is a requirement to be eligible to drive.

With tests you can take online which you have to score 80% or higher to pass and you can take as many times as you want untill you pass or after you pass. 10 question tests with the same 15 questions that pop up in the test...
Worthless.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

It's the gummint, whadya want?

 

[Hawkeye]

Where did the drivers EVER get the idea that they were entitled to any sort of unemployment compensation over the summer? That's just stupid and outrageous.

I don't know if the school system, or the contracting company or the state agency said they were eligible but it makes absolutely NO sense. Hired as a school bus driver, its reasonable to assume that the job would end with the end of the school year. Why would you ever think that you would have a job over the summer (or spring/fall/thanksgiving/christmas breaks either).

 

[eatsnopaste]

More truth here than folks realize. Still the wrong thing to do in a busing world. We live a 5 minute walk from the local IPS school and they were going to send my son all the hell way across town (45/55 minute buss ride) for Kindergarten. Wrong...Catholic school. Yes, a lot of money but they went with folks they knew all the way through and were never subjected to politics or union crap.

You mean..gasp..real life?

 

[MrsGungho]

Where did the drivers EVER get the idea that they were entitled to any sort of unemployment compensation over the summer? That's just stupid and outrageous.

I don't know if the school system, or the contracting company or the state agency said they were eligible but it makes absolutely NO sense. Hired as a school bus driver, its reasonable to assume that the job would end with the end of the school year. Why would you ever think that you would have a job over the summer (or spring/fall/thanksgiving/christmas breaks either).

since the school contracts it out, I doubt it was them. The driver and aide I talked to though on Friday at the school told me that Durham Services(the bus company and employee of the drivers) told them they were eligible for unemployment over the summer. The state says they aren't.

 

[jeremy]

Sue the company that provided the buses and drivers for breach of contract. And hire someone else to do the job....

 

[churchmouse]

You mean..gasp..real life?

Yeah, real life I guess. Call me an enabler or shielding my kids but I grew up in a neighborhood school surrounded by all my friends and I guess it worked out OK. Jury is still out on that one..........

 

[MrsGungho]

Sue the company that provided the buses and drivers for breach of contract. And hire someone else to do the job....

even though the boys driver worked in spite of the strike and we weren't affected, to many were.