#SCHOOL BUS DRIVER JOBS DRIVERS#

The district is also spending millions of dollars on retention bonuses: Bus drivers, custodians, and food service workers who stick with the district for the year will get $4,500.

#SCHOOL BUS DRIVER JOBS DRIVERS#

Jefferson County schools in Kentucky are giving bus drivers an extra $6 an hour in incentive pay.Ĭlark County, Nevada, one of the largest districts in the country, reported that it had hired more than 100 bus drivers after it hiked starting pay to nearly $23 an hour, up from just over $15 an hour.

A Pennsylvania district that serves 8,500 students is offering a $4,000 signing bonus for bus drivers, Burbio noted, on top of paying $25 to $30 an hour. Nearly 3 in 10 districts tapped other school staff to perform cafeteria duties.ĭistricts, like Houston, are also trying hefty stipends and bonuses, often funded by federal COVID relief dollars.īurbio, a private company that has been tracking school budgets and fall plans, found that in recent weeks there’s been a “marked increase in the size and duration” of incentive payments being used to attract school staff. Three in 10 of the districts RAND surveyed raised pay or benefits for bus drivers last school year, while more than a quarter asked other staff to drive a bus.

“We suspect districts are still likely experiencing shortages,” the researchers wrote, “because of competition with other employers for low-wage workers.” Licensing requirements and worker health concerns could also be a factor, they added.ĭistricts have already tried many tactics to fill support staff roles. That survey was based on responses from nearly 300 district and charter network leaders compiled from late February to early April. Those school leaders also were most likely to report that they had multiple vacancies for bus drivers and custodians - meaning those roles were both in high demand and hard to staff.Īnother survey released last month by the RAND Corporation found that nearly 6 in 10 districts said they were still trying to increase their number of bus drivers, while a third already had. And around 4 in 10 said tutors would be very difficult to find. Nearly half said the same about custodians. Principals don’t expect that to change in the new school year, a federal survey of nearly 860 school leaders released Thursday found.Ībout 6 in 10 principals said this June that they expected their vacant transportation staff roles to be “very difficult” to fill in the 2022-23 school year. Schools have struggled to fill a number of lower-paid positions during the pandemic, including bus drivers.

School bus driver jobs