Driving Up Wages at First Student
It almost came to a strike but Providence school bus drivers came away with a strong contract, including raises of nearly 44% for some First Student drivers.
When contract negotiations covering 184 school bus drivers at First Student came to a head, management refused to give ground on a key demand of the members: to increase their guaranteed hours from 2½ to 3 hours per shift. Then they voted 90 to 6 against management’s “last, best and final offer” and voted to go on strike after the February school break if the company didn’t make an increase in guaranteed pay retroactive.