To subscribe to Capitol Fax, click here. *** UPDATED x1 - AFSCME responds *** Desperate school district wants National Guard troops to drive buses Thursday, Sep 22, 2016 * I didn’t realize it, but a private company says there’s a national school bus driver shortage (check the Google) and it’s hurting a McLean County district. From September 9th… Unit 5’s bus contractor has “let us down,” Superintendent Mark Daniel said Thursday, as hundreds of students again were late for school because of a lack of drivers. In some cases, buses were running 90 minutes to two hours late. First Student notified the district of the problem at 6:45 a.m. and the district alerted principals, schools and parents * It’s gotten so bad that school officials want the National Guard to step in… Still plagued by late and overcrowded school buses, McLean County Unit 5 may turn to National Guard members, police and firefighters as possible fill-in drivers and to Gov. Bruce Rauner and other officials for help streamlining the hiring process. […] “Hopefully there can be some executive action that will allow firemen, police officers and members of the National Guard to solve this problem short term. We need them to be a part of our fleet,” said Daniel. Daniel said he’ll meet Thursday with state Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington, and Regional Office of Education Superintendent Mark Jontry to discuss how to expedite the hiring process. The governor’s office could approve an alternative driver certification process, for example, he said. Yeah, there’s a great idea. Unilaterally and quickly lower the state standards for school bus drivers. What could possibly go wrong? * First Student is the largest private school bus company in the nation. And it’s a profitable company, too. From last year… First Student, the largest provider of student transportation in North America, saw revenue and profit gains for fiscal year 2015, according to annual earnings released last month. The company cited alterations in the prices of new contract bids and renewals for the boosts. The company, which transports roughly six million students across more than 1,300 school districts, said it saw revenues for fiscal year 2015 peak at $2.4 billion, which is up from $2.3 billion last year. As for operating profits, First Student increased to $177 million, an improvement on the $153 million made in 2014. These returns were a result of a push from parent company FirstGroup plc for a turnaround plan to increase the rates of contract bids and renewals, which proved successful, and made up for losses in other divisions. With almost a third of its contracts up for renewal in 2014, the company held a 90 percent retention rate with those contracts averaging 4.5 percent price increases. * Back to the Pantagraph story… To attract applicants, First Student is offering a $2,000 hiring bonus. Applicants must be at least 21 years old with a valid driver’s license for at least three years and must pass a background and drug check and physical performance test, according to the company’s website. Starting pay for First Student bus drivers is $14 per hour with five paid holidays and paid CDL training. Looks to me like people with commercial drivers licenses aren’t willing to operate a school bus for that part-time wage in an improving economy. So, maybe the company should sweeten the pot and attract more applicants so the government doesn’t have to lower standards and spend precious dollars sending in National Guard troops or pay to use high-wage cops and firefighters? The company’s bottom line shouldn’t be a concern here. They signed the contract so they gotta provide the service. If it costs them some extra money, so be it. The government shouldn’t bail them out. So, if the state does send in troops, First Student should be sent an invoice. *** UPDATE *** From Anders Lindall at AFSCME Council 31… The drivers were school district employees (AFSCME-represented) until just a couple years ago. We fought hard to stop the outsourcing for this reason — they were doing it to undercut the wages of the drivers, which was bound to affect quality if not safety. - Posted by Rich Miller

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