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Unifor members of First Student Bus – which provides school bus services for English and French language schools in Cornwall and Embrun, Ont. – recently ratified their four-year contract by 91%.
“Congratulations to the bargaining committee for addressing the need for wages to stay ahead of the current inflation rate, so our members can be better equipped to battle rising cost-of-living increases,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.
“School bus operators are an integral part of the public education system with important responsibilities. I’m pleased to hear this agreement helps make progress for them.”
The 65 members of First Student Cornwall at Local 4266 work mostly as drivers with two mechanics. The deal didn’t have any concessions and includes a 15% wage increase over the life of the contract, built on existing gains won last year.
In this new deal, there is a new job classification of tradesperson who does bodywork and repair on buses, who is not a mechanic.
The union also renewed its letter demanding First Student not put driver-facing cameras in the vehicles to protect privacy, which the company agreed to.
There are also language improvements for paid time for driving, as school boards create their routes based on Google Maps, without consideration for traffic.
“This agreement makes the First Student drivers among the highest paid in this region. Our members are getting recognized and compensated for their hard work,” said Unifor Local 4266 President André Desjardins.
“The language surrounding this contract will help protect the members immensely.”
Desjardins added this contract drastically reduces “deadhead” time – when drivers don’t start getting paid until students board the bus.
Unifor represents 20,000 members across the road transportation sector, with over 2,000 school bus drivers.
