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BARRHEAD/WESTLOCK — In a bid to increase the number of bus drivers, the Pembina Hills School Division is now financially compensating those who complete the mandatory training based on what type of certification they eventually obtain.
During the Oct. 26 board meeting in Barrhead, Pembina Hills trustees reviewed some recent changes to Administrative Procedure (AP) 70-116, which covers bus driver certification and training.
The AP now states that those who obtain an S-Endorsement will be paid $240, while those who complete all the requirements to become a Class 2 operator will receive $540.
Those who obtain a Q-Endorsement for air brakes, which is mandatory for all bus drivers, shall receive $120.
Deputy Supt. of human resources Brett Cooper explained that Pembina Hills, like most school divisions throughout the province, is having difficulty finding enough bus drivers.
“If you go to our website on a daily basis, you’ll notice we’re struggling to keep our routes running on a consistent basis,” said Cooper, adding one to two routes are being cancelled each day.
Compensating would-be drivers for the time they put into training is part of an effort to decrease that interruption for parents and students, Cooper said.
He cited a couple of examples for the board of instances where someone expressed an interest in becoming a bus driver, but it wasn’t worth putting in the 65 hours or so required to complete all the training, especially if they live outside of Barrhead.
“It’s a small step. This is an ongoing issue, and everybody is well aware of the issues that are happening across the province.”
Deputy chair Sherry Allen recalled there had been an issue previously with candidates obtaining free training and certification through Pembina Hills and then going on to other jobs.
“Now we’re not only going to give them free training, but we’re going to pay them to take that training,” she said.
Allen asked Cooper if there had been anything done to address that issue.
He replied that Pembina Hills now requires potential bus drivers to put down a cash deposit of $1,000, which the division then holds in trust. That money is returned to the prospective driver upon completing a certain number of bus trips.
Since making that change, the issue of people taking training and going elsewhere has been addressed, he said.
Board chair Judy Lefebvre asked Cooper how many people were involved in bus driver training within Pembina Hills.
Cooper indicated there were four or five, and they were working on a plan to increase the number of staff leading new bus drivers through training. One possible method was through partnering with other school divisions.
Lefebvre thanked Cooper and the transportation department for their efforts, noting that while there is a problem in Pembina Hills, she had heard from a family in Calgary with different school start times for their children due to a lack of bus drivers forcing the division to add more routes.
“We’re not doing too badly here relative to that,” she said.
