School Back in Session

[o1marc]

My county went back last week. A neighboring county is advertising for needed drivers. Claim the county makes 45k stops a day.

 

[brokedown-SKO]

if I didn't hate kids so damn much I'd consider it. Drive my bus to the bus I drive, then drive that bus for a while, drive back to my bus, and drive my bus home.

 

[EastCoastCB]

if I didn't hate kids so damn much I'd consider it. Drive my bus to the bus I drive, then drive that bus for a while, drive back to my bus, and drive my bus home.

Woulda been cool in the past but kids these days suck. They are mostly a bunch of entitled bratty snowflakes.
Trav and Michelle's kids are really cool, but they're the exception.
Oh, and Raul's are adorable!!

That said, I'd still rather not have to drive em to school!

Here in FL they don't really pay a whole lot more than minimum wage and you can't smoke weed or anything. Seems like it would be a thankless, low paying dead end job to me.

 

[Marceps]

I wonder if most districts provide assistance in obtaining a CDL.

 

[CaptSquid]

If you're going to be operating a kid hauler, you WILL need a Class B CDL. Bus companies might help you in obtaining that ticket, but I think if the School Districts are the operating authority, then they might require you to have one before being hired on.

 

[alpine44]

I wonder if most districts provide assistance in obtaining a CDL.

For example, McDowell county in NC offers CDL classes for new driver candidates in conjunction with the community college and DMV. I am going to take advantage of that during the next class in November.

Just ask the bus depot in your and adjacent counties.

 

[JDOnTheGo]

I don't like being negative but this thread struck a cord...

I have a few family members that drive school bus because it works well with their schedule (in the ministry). What a NIGHTMARE!! The stories they tell are amazing and very frightening. One that I remember is that he (a minister/preacher) took a big sack of unused toys from the church nursery and asked one of the older kids to distribute them to the younger kids (this is a very poor, rural district). One of the parents complained that the bus driver gave their young daughter a gift but not their older son. WOW - the earth stood still. He (the driver) was suspended and a county investigation was started - guilty until proven innocent with some potential outcomes that were really terrible. It all ended ok but was a stressful few months. The kids have learned that the system now favors them and they know how to play it. Just say "the bus driver hit me" and boom - someone's life changes. The drivers I know insist on the cameras to protect themselves!!

I'd go dumpster diving for food before taking a job driving school bus....

 

[EastCoastCB]

I don't like being negative but this thread struck a cord...

I have a few family members that drive school bus because it works well with their schedule (in the ministry). What a NIGHTMARE!! The stories they tell are amazing and very frightening. One that I remember is that he (a minister/preacher) took a big sack of unused toys from the church nursery and asked one of the older kids to distribute them to the younger kids (this is a very poor, rural district). One of the parents complained that the bus driver gave their young daughter a gift but not their older son. WOW - the earth stood still. He (the driver) was suspended and a county investigation was started - guilty until proven innocent with some potential outcomes that were really terrible. It all ended ok but was a stressful few months. The kids have learned that the system now favors them and they know how to play it. Just say "the bus driver hit me" and boom - someone's life changes. The drivers I know insist on the cameras to protect themselves!!

I'd go dumpster diving for food before taking a job driving school bus....

We need a "clapping" emoticon.

 

[EastCoastCB]

What a bunch of wimpy, entitled brats-
Video: Teacher grabs student by throat, slams him onto cafeteria table
Don't let the headline fool you- that kid is violent and has a history of punching everyone around him. Funny how these kids play the victim the moment reality kicks in.
Can't even subdue them when they get out of line.

Imagine a whole bus full of these "angels".

 

[2kool4skool]

I drove elderly and handicapped, great job.

I drove hotel to airport shuttle, crap job.

I'd never drive a school bus, with kids that is.

 

[cadillackid]

the issue these days is the districts lack of backing up their drivers in instances of behaviour issues with students.. when i was in school late 70s through mid 80s, if we acted up on the bus, the driver pulled over shut off the bus and stood up.. the offending one or 2 kids got sat down in the right front seat and then taken into the school offiuce where phone calls were made home... a second offense in a reasonable amount of time and that kid(s) were off the bus for a week...



it almost never came to that because us kids feared that call home to the parents more than being kicked off the bus.. that fear no longer exists.. the kids cry and the parents go slam the school for unfairly marching their precious child to the front of the bus in front of everyone embarassing them.. or the parents just dont return the call or answer the phone...



sometimes a transportation director tries to be proactive and downloads the video to use as evidence but often said kid is given so many chances before being kicked off that the driver throws up their arms and either quits or simply drives the route with kids screaming and being completely terrible...



many districts have so much trouble getting drivers that if a driver agrees to driver for an entire school year they will pay for CDL-B training / testing / and even followups required as long as that driver remains on staff.



First student here in central Ohio got so notorious that a few years back columbus city kicked them out and bought over 200 brand new busses so they had at least some control over who went in the seat... first student had so many infractrions of student injuries / drug test failures, etc in columbus from it's crappy drivers that they couldnt even stay in an inner-city environment...



I believe the drivers here make $18.50 / hour however thats only when on shift and its not full time.. your shift is split.. you do get paid while pre-tripping and post-tripping your bus, and while waiting when driving field trips.. but the drivers fight over field trip and sports / music / special runs.. (those are the easy ones because teachers or coaches are on the bus and keep the students in check)..



typically the new drivers are tossed into the most inner-city routes where the students are the worst.. and drivers are often held accountable for damages that occur to the bus.. ie cut seats.. cameras help with that but kids are not dumb.. they know how to hide from the video...



the nicer suburbam districts around town have a lot better driver retention because they tend to have kids from (I hate to say it) less-broken families.. where that call home might still nean something.. and many of them even have bus-monitor programs where an older high school student rides the bus to help with discipline..



some districts are dropping bussing altogether except for SPED routes...

-Christopher

 

[karrlot]

I teach elementary school all day long. You couldn't pay me to drive that 20 minutes of **** twice a day. On the flip side it would be nice to befriend a couple of mechanics!

 

[o1marc]

I asked the head guy at the school bus yard about drivers and our discussion of them. He says they pay $75/day for 3 hours work. Decent hourly wage with no hours. He says they can't keep drivers because of the pay and the kids behavior.

 

[EastCoastCB]

I asked the head guy at the school bus yard about drivers and our discussion of them. He says they pay $75/day for 3 hours work. Decent hourly wage with no hours. He says they can't keep drivers because of the pay and the kids behavior.

I'd be shocked if the local drivers here make more than $12 and hour!

 

[PNW_Steve]

I'd be shocked if the local drivers here make more than $12 and hour!

I poked around here and it looks like $18-$22 an hour.

 

[#1FordFan]

I drive a school bus for my full time job.
My school does have free training (here in Ohio) for your CDL B

I do it for a few different reasons.
This where I get my health insurance.
I work a 4hour day (7-9AM & 2-4PM)
This total of about 720 hours a year
It gives me time for vacation in the summer and time for my college classes during the day.
For the hours I put in the pay is decent
$21.5K a year + extra runs.
We have cameras (x2) on the bus. It helps for sure. Many schools don’t pay worth a crap.
I work union and would not do it any other way.

 

[MsAmanda]

I wonder if most districts provide assistance in obtaining a CDL.

I am a school bus driver. In my district, I work directly for the school. They helped me through the process of obtaining my CDL. The pay is decent for part time work. Here, the children are not like everyone has been describing. It’s rural. I have found that the more densely populated the area, the more challenging behaviors school faculty tends to face. Aside from the early hours, I really enjoy my job.

 

[CE42]

Here in FL they don't really pay a whole lot more than minimum wage and you can't smoke weed or anything.

Hehehe... I don't smoke weed, but if I had to drive a bus load of the type of kids that most parents are raising today I think I'd have to start!

 

[Asetechrail]

I drove a school bus for a year. The morning run was always just fine. Kids got on the bus still half asleep and rode politely to school. The afternoon run was just the opposite! After one year I knew I would not be back.

 

[vintageracer]

The need for school bus driver's here in Tennessee is HUGE!!!

Jobs open everywhere for school bus driver's!

Metro Nashville pays $14-$20/hour and you are a full time employee of the school system with full benefits once you have completed training. Total compensation can be $32K-$41K with bonus and they pay while training for CDL.