Post by title1parent on Feb 18, 2009 6:12:14 GMT -5
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=272931&src=76
Dist. 203, bus drivers reach deal
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 2/18/200
Naperville school bus drivers said they've fared well with a secure job and annual wage increases locked into their newest contract with Naperville Unit District 203.
According to the tentative agreement approved by the Naperville Transportation Association Feb. 10 and the district on Tuesday night, 135 drivers and mechanics will get annual 3-percent cost of living pay increases through July 2012.
"I think the district is pleased and I think our members are pleased," said association President Max Bochmann. "In this environment, stable employment and a bit more money is a very good thing."
In May 2006, drivers took an 11.8 percent pay cut and mechanics' salaries were frozen, allowing the district to arrive at the same net cost, after state reimbursements, as it would have achieved if the entire operation was outsourced.
"It's very important to note, publicly, that the last time we negotiated a bus driver contract the ultimate agreement provided almost a 12 percent reduction across the board for our bus driver," said Superintendent Alan Leis. "So this new agreement, for the next three years, will allow us to going to keep the balance between our current bus drivers and also keep First Student involved in this."
Instead, the district opted to outsource some routes to First Student bus company and reduce the district's fleet from 134 to 118 through retirements and resignations. Outsourcing, they said, has improved safety at the bus facility, which was previously overcrowded, and has eliminated the need to rent more space for bus and driver parking and lowered overall insurance costs.
"We had some people who couldn't afford to stay," Bochmann said of the 2006 contract. "It was a matter of 12 percent in the annual rate, but it ended up being closer to 20 percent in terms of our annual earnings."
Currently, top paid drivers make about $16.24 per hour, still down from the $17.41 they made in 2006. Bochmann said union members aren't dwelling on that. "We've got a new document and we're moving forward."
District officials also were pleased to retain the association, in line with market costs, while also pleasing parents who they say have "strongly supported" a fleet driven by local members of the community
Dist. 203, bus drivers reach deal
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 2/18/200
Naperville school bus drivers said they've fared well with a secure job and annual wage increases locked into their newest contract with Naperville Unit District 203.
According to the tentative agreement approved by the Naperville Transportation Association Feb. 10 and the district on Tuesday night, 135 drivers and mechanics will get annual 3-percent cost of living pay increases through July 2012.
"I think the district is pleased and I think our members are pleased," said association President Max Bochmann. "In this environment, stable employment and a bit more money is a very good thing."
In May 2006, drivers took an 11.8 percent pay cut and mechanics' salaries were frozen, allowing the district to arrive at the same net cost, after state reimbursements, as it would have achieved if the entire operation was outsourced.
"It's very important to note, publicly, that the last time we negotiated a bus driver contract the ultimate agreement provided almost a 12 percent reduction across the board for our bus driver," said Superintendent Alan Leis. "So this new agreement, for the next three years, will allow us to going to keep the balance between our current bus drivers and also keep First Student involved in this."
Instead, the district opted to outsource some routes to First Student bus company and reduce the district's fleet from 134 to 118 through retirements and resignations. Outsourcing, they said, has improved safety at the bus facility, which was previously overcrowded, and has eliminated the need to rent more space for bus and driver parking and lowered overall insurance costs.
"We had some people who couldn't afford to stay," Bochmann said of the 2006 contract. "It was a matter of 12 percent in the annual rate, but it ended up being closer to 20 percent in terms of our annual earnings."
Currently, top paid drivers make about $16.24 per hour, still down from the $17.41 they made in 2006. Bochmann said union members aren't dwelling on that. "We've got a new document and we're moving forward."
District officials also were pleased to retain the association, in line with market costs, while also pleasing parents who they say have "strongly supported" a fleet driven by local members of the community