BY ELIZABETH LARISCY  
LOS ANGELES--Hundreds of school bus drivers employed by Laidlaw Education Services--the largest school bus company contracted by Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and one of the largest national school bus contractors--have been on strike here since April 3.

The drivers, who had been working without a contract since August, are demanding a pay raise and an improved benefit package. The 842 striking workers are members of Teamsters Local 572. Laidlaw employees transport 20,000 students each day in the Los Angeles district.

Laidlaw drivers are paid between $8.75 and $14.35 per hour, approximately half the wages of drivers employed directly by LAUSD. They receive no medical coverage for the first year of employment, and then must pay a medical premium of more than $200 a month, which does not even include family coverage. "With wages so low it is impossible to afford medical coverage for my family," said one striker whose wife had joined him on the picket line.

The Teamsters are striking for wages comparable to district-employed school bus drivers, who earn from $15 to $24 an hour and are eligible for district health coverage and state pension plans.

On the picket line, strikers describe some of the many challenges they face on the job. Angela, with nine years as a driver, said, "It can be very difficult. Some drivers have handicapped children who need special assistance. None of this is taken into account by the company." Dora Coleman, who has been driving for 15 years, described the stress and high degree of responsibility involved in transporting a bus full of students. "But," she added, "the children aren’t the problem." In addition to low pay and few benefits "they treat us with abuse every day. I’m for staying out until we all get what we deserve."

The striking workers on April 15 overwhelmingly rejected Laidlaw’s latest contract offer by a vote of 413-2. Teamsters officials had urged a no vote. The proposal increased the hourly pay but offered little improvement in benefits. Negotiations are being conducted under the auspices of a federal mediator.

In addition to the low wages, the company guarantees drivers only five hours pay per day. Because of the schedule of school and extracurricular activities drivers can be at work waiting for an assignment for several hours in the middle of the day. The union is asking for guaranteed pay for at least six hours a day.

The Los Angeles School Board claims that it’s not responsible for conditions of employment provided by its contractors. The board has worked to break the strike by hiring other small contractors and using its own drivers and supervisory personnel to operate more of the district’s buses. Picketers have also been involved in protesting the school board’s antiunion stance.

Elizabeth Lariscy is a garment worker in Los Angeles  
 
 
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