Stock Transportation workers not paid for all work: Unifor
School bus drivers employed by Stock Transportation supported strike mandates on April 29, voting 94 per cent and 95 per cent in favour, due to contract negotiations not reaching a settlement, said Unifor.
“We will be working hard to resolve this impasse but at the end of the day these drivers have a huge responsibility and the employer, school boards and the provincial government need to recognize and appropriately compensate them for their work,” said Naureen Rizvi, Unifor Ontario regional director.
Unifor, Local 4268 represents about 575 school bus drivers who provide services for the Toronto District School Board, the Franco Board, the Toronto Catholic District School Board and other customers in locations in the greater Toronto area. Some or all of the customers may see service interruptions if the parties fail to come to a tentative agreement by May 2, said the union.
“Drivers are expected to fulfill various unpaid tasks before, between and even after their routes. This practice has become so widespread that driving a school bus is now partially volunteer work — instead of regular paid employment,” said Debbie Montgomery, Unifors Local 4268 president. “We endeavor to have each school bus driver paid for their working time.”
School bus drivers operate large commercial vehicles with a load of up to 70 children and assist students with special needs to attend programs or schools, all on a tight schedule. Many times, school bus drivers have multiple routes or destinations built into their schedule, said Unifor.
Stock Transportation drivers working under two collective agreements (Toronto East Division and Toronto North Division) are currently involved in this bargaining, said the union.
