HEADLINES The Cost of Hiring the Wrong Bus Driver By Terah Shelton


affect how the driver’s actions (or inactions) are perceived by others. Staff morale can be negatively affected by employees going through a revolving door of being hired, and then just as quickly fired. Also, students and parents can look negatively upon a school district or transportation department that has the wrong people on their staffs. “Drivers who do not drive as professional school bus drivers


hurt the entire industry,” Lawrence said. “Te public is quick to label groups such as ours based on the actions of a few unprofes- sional employees.” Michael Smith, superintendent of Oakland (Ill.) CUSD #5 said he


believes hidden costs of hiring the wrong driver becomes an issue because many bus driver applicants come with no experience. “Te school district is starting them from scratch,” he said. “Tis


What’s widely reported is that 16,000 school bus collisions


occur annually nationwide, resulting in 12,000 injuries and 130 deaths. Granted, other motorists are often at fault — and injured or killed as a result. But many crashes can be attributed to school bus driver negligence and improper training. According to Kenneth S. Trump, president of National School


Safety and Security Services, school bus drivers, by the nature of their work, have one of the highest risk jobs in a school district. “Tey are responsible for the safety of a group of students as


large, if not larger, than the average classroom,” he said. “Tey must not only drive the physical bus itself, but also manage stu- dent behavior and disciplinary issues, all while driving with their backs turned to the individuals with whom they are trying to interact and safely manage.” What remains widely unknown are the hidden costs to school dis-


tricts of hiring the wrong school bus driver. “Te financial cost of training a driver (providing a driver-


trainer, bus, fuel, finger-printing, drug and alcohol testing, etc.) is very costly,” said Peter Lawrence, director of transportation for the Fairport (N.Y.) Central School District. Harm or injury to students and others, increased legal liability


risks and adverse school-community relations are all potentially significant costs for hiring ill-trained drivers who work under higher risk circumstances. Jeffrey J. Kroll, a plaintiff personal injury lawyer at a firm in


Chicago, also pointed out that transportation negligence and negligent entrustment are two areas of law that more school of- ficials need to be made aware of. Recently, a Florida jury awarded $1.625 million to a 16-year-old


victim of a 2006 school bus crash. Te student suffered a trau- matic brain injury and vision loss. Te jury found the school bus driver negligent and attributed 65 percent responsibility for the accident to the school district. Te school district’s share of the verdict came to about $875,000. In addition to the financial aspects, hiring the wrong driver could


20 School Transportation News Magazine April 2010


differs from other employees (teachers, custodians, administrators), who can begin to work immediately because they are already li- censed or trained in their field. When they apply for a position they are already up to date on all job requirements or licensing issues.” Some public transit bus companies require several years of ex-


perience driving a bus or truck. However, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, many people who become school bus drivers have never driven any vehicle larger than a car. “It is crucial that we are hiring the best employees we can find


in our own marketplace,” Lawrence said. “Te training aspect is one of the most important things we do in transportation because this is the time where we (the trainee and employer) are courting each other. Te trainee is evaluating the operation and the employer is as- sessing the trainee’s skills and how they will fit into the organization.” Trump says school officials who end up with problem bus driv-


ers typically err in two major areas. Te first is failing to complete a thorough, comprehensive background check beyond required minimum state criminal history checks. Te second is a failure to provide comprehensive, ongoing professional development training on managing student behavior and potential crisis situa- tions on the bus and in related driver work environments. Overall, Kroll said, garbage in, garbage out — an old computer


adage that is equally true when investigating and hiring drivers. “Put the time in to properly train and select the drivers,” he


added. “If a driver isn’t working out or you have complaints or suspicions, get rid of them. Hire slowly, fire quickly.” Lawrence said that school administrators should look for people


with growth potential who want to contribute to the organization. “We need to make sure that we do not settle for a ‘warm


body’ because we are short drivers and good applicants,” he said. “When we settle on the minimum acceptable standards, it often comes back to haunt us and worse yet, negatively affect our stu- dents. We owe it to our community and peers to hire the best qualified staff we can find.” ■


Shelton is a freelance writer based in Eufaula, Ala.


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