Parents either have to transport their kids to and from school themselves or keep them home. The situation is “out of control” as frantic parents scramble to figure out what to do with their children. It’s not a strike, bus drivers say. They just won’t be picking up the kids until they’re told.
School bus stoppage
Parents in Warwick, Rhode Island feel betrayed. They pay their taxes so they expect to see the services. Disgruntled parents there are liberal enough to sympathize with oppressed workers but draw the line when it inconveniences them personally.
Especially when nobody but the lawyers seem to know why. Even the school bus drivers were shocked on Friday, October 1. They showed up for work and found out they weren’t working.
The first round of buses had already hit the streets to take the High Schoolers off to class when word came down to shut it all down. The Warwick School District reached out to parents by phone and email to explain they were just as shocked.
All they knew was that “the busing company, First Student, would be unable to provide transportation services to students due to a union labor issue.”
Everybody knew there were ongoing contract negotiations. Nobody knew they had broken down. All the drivers showed up get kids to school as expected but were told “not to pick them up.” Elementary and middle school students were left standing at the stops.
Even the special “short buses” for special needs students were parked. Word on the street was they were down for the rest of the morning and as long as it takes.
Blame the bus company
The afternoon service was canceled as well, with drivers holding an impromptu rally “outside the First Student bus yard as it was filled with empty buses that were put back in their parking spots.” Angry parents flooded parking lots as they brought their children to school at the “last minute with seemingly no idea who stopped the buses.”
A rep for the driver union, Steve Sousa, shrugged and said he was clueless. He’s as confused as the drivers. “The blame goes to First Student as far as I’m concerned, we are waiting to hear, we don’t know what’s going on. But they left a lot of students stranded.”
The bus company isn’t saying much. They told a local news station they “understand the frustration this caused students and parents, especially on such short notice.”
Other than that all they can add is “First Student supported the Warwick School Department’s decision to suspend transportation today. We were unfortunately not informed in advance that several employees planned to not report for work.” That’s news to the employees.
Earlier in the week, some of the drivers told the same outlet that “they were unhappy about how contract negotiations were going” but nobody said anything about a strike. They did say “the company was not taking the drivers seriously when it came to meeting their demands.”
Officials with the school bus company assure the parents “First Student is in active negotiations with the union representing the drivers in Warwick and those negotiations have been productive.” Be ready to take your kids to class on your own again Monday, though.
