Wake schools ask families to pick up their kids Friday because of bus driver strike
Many Wake County parents had to arrange their own transportation to get their children home from school Friday because of bus driver absences in some areas.
In an email sent early Friday afternoon, Wake told parents to prepare for the possibility of significant absences. This came after bus service was significantly disrupted Friday morning because of a number of drivers calling in sick to protest working conditions.
“If possible, parents should arrange their own transportation for their students this afternoon,” the district said in the update. “This is true even if bus transportation was available this morning, as we are uncertain which drivers will be available.”
On Pride Way in northwest Raleigh on Friday afternoon, Leesville Road High School emptied out with a long list of driverless bus routes.
The school’s car pool line snaked down past Leesville Road elementary and middle schools, which would soon add to the crowding, with cars spilling both directions onto Country Trail. Parents sat with laptops open on their dashboards and hand-written notes on the windows showing their students’ names.
“I’m just glad I’m off today,” said Lakiesha Baker, waiting for her high-schooler.
By 3 p.m., the line formed a 100-car caravan driven by the two younger schools exiting at once.
On a normal day, Kerri Vaughan would arrive for pickup at 3:15 p.m. She sat at the line’s end at 2:45 p.m. Friday.
“I don’t mind it,” she said. “We need more bus drivers. They need to be paid better.”
School system officials said two-thirds of all buses (400 out of 600) ran Friday morning.
Wake told parents of bus riders to visit the bus updates page to check the status of their child’s bus.
Wake County is North Carolina’s largest school system, with 160,000 students. In a normal year, 75,000 to 80,000 students ride the school bus.
Problems could continue Monday
Friday’s problems could occur again next week, with Wake saying that “at this time, bus service for Monday is also uncertain and we ask that families plan with this understanding.”
“Know that we are working to address the root causes of this issue, but for today our primary concern is to ensure student safety,” the district said in its Friday afternoon update.
A major root cause is complaints about low pay. The school board will vote Tuesday on a plan to provide raises and bonuses to school employees, including bus drivers.
In a message to school system employees on Friday afternoon from Superintendent Cathy Moore and school board Chairman Keith Sutton, they said they expect “the school board conversation Tuesday will address ways that employees can be paid more for future work. For example, additional pay for additional bus routes will be discussed. So will additional compensation for extra teaching duties.”
The message also noted, “While it is never acceptable for any of us to deny services to families, it is important we understand we are all facing a similar problem of low pay made worse by the pandemic.”
Problems began Friday morning
Parents received an electronic notice shortly before 8 a.m. Friday announcing that many bus routes were not running at all. It advised them to check wcpss.net for updates. Parents had already been warned Thursday afternoon by the district that there could be delays due to the driver sickout.
At 8:45 a.m., Panther Creek High School in Cary showed 11 bus routes with no driver available. At Garner High School, 21 routes had no driver.
“Alot of frustrated parents in long drop-off line at our @WCPSS elementary school this morning,” tweeted Greg Gebhardt. “I’m just thankful that we’re in a position to be able to get our girls to school when bus drivers call out. We feel for all those single parents, etc. who aren’t as fortunate.”
Hard-hit area
The Leesville Road region appeared especially bad Friday, with more than 100 middle, high and elementary school routes delayed or uncovered.
Parents in that area noted on Facebook that their routes have faced problems all year, with four bus drivers on a single route since school’s opening and many running double routes for weeks.
“Standing in solidarity with our @WCPSS bus drivers AND our teachers — poor pay, subbing instead of planning,” tweeted parent Heidi Walker. “When it comes to bottom of the barrel everything when it comes to those who transport and teach our children — they deserve much better!”
High vacancy rate
As of September, Wake had a 17% vacancy rate among school bus drivers with 139 vacant positions. The shortage forced Wake to redraw bus routes, causing it to take longer getting students to and from school.
Drivers who used to do two schools a day are now handling five or more schools. It’s so busy that some drivers say they have to skip bathroom breaks to stay on schedule.
The driver shortage is a statewide and national problem. The shortage was so bad in Massachusetts that the National Guard was called in at the start of the school year to help drive some school buses.
Several school bus drivers spoke out at a rally in September calling on North Carolina lawmakers to approve a budget that includes at least a $15 an hour minimum salary for school employees. The state funds the base salaries of school employees with districts often supplementing the pay.
This story was originally published October 29, 2021 at 8:18 AM with the headline "Wake schools ask families to pick up their kids Friday because of bus driver strike."