'They can't get people to work here': U-46 drivers call for better pay to attract more workers

Days that start at 5:15 a.m. and end at 4:45 p.m. Workplace temperatures that hit 120 degrees in the summer. The possibility of being kicked, punched or slapped. Confrontations with students in possession of illegal drugs. Take home pay of $585 every two weeks.

That's the true version of the help-wanted advertisement Elgin Area School District U-46 has for its bus drivers, according to the people who have been doing the job.

Since the start of this school year, the more than 300 drivers and bus assistants in the state's second-largest school district have called for pay that is at least competitive with that of nearby school districts. The district's administration now has agreed to open union contract negotiations with the drivers earlier than planned. The current contract doesn't expire until July 1, 2025.

But in the backdrop of those talks will be the latest budget approved by the school board. It shows expenses outpacing income by more than $20 million, if not for $50 million the district will borrow to help fund construction projects.

Kathryn Bentley is one of several members of the district's transportation department to plead with the school board in recent weeks to solve what she and her co-workers described as a daily crisis of not having enough drivers to get to school on time.

“I have seen many posts on social media from frustrated parents that are upset their kids are missing 10 to 15 minutes of class time every morning,” Bentley told the board recently. “Some of these students have developed anxiety over this. It doesn't exactly fit well with our 'attendance matters' that is on our district homepage.

“The problem is plain and simple. We do not have enough employees, and pay is the problem.”

The current contract with drivers shows a starting pay of $19.50 an hour. That compares, drivers said, to $22.86 for St. Charles Unit District 303 bus drivers — a 17% difference.

Tina Semock is eight years into driving for U-46. She still hasn't hit the $22.86 mark. The top pay for drivers in U-46 is $25.66 an hour. When she goes to local farmers' markets to try to recruit new drivers for the district, Semock said, as soon as the conversation turns to pay and people jump online to see how it compares to that of other districts, any consideration of working for U-46 vanishes.

“They can't get people to work here, and they are not going to,” Semock said. She's thought about leaving. It's only her seniority, which allows her to pick more cherished routes to drive, that keeps her from moving on.

“I've lived in Elgin my whole life,” Semock said. “I know Elgin like the back of my hand. When there (are) traffic issues, I know where to go.

“I just decided I would rather try to get the district to fix this problem than leave. But I won't go another two years (when the contract expires). If they choose to not do anything more about it, I will need to go somewhere else.”

As it is now, Semock and the other drivers said office staff, management and even nonunion employees in the district's transportation department jump in to drive routes most days. There is a “just do the best you can” mission to get 22,000 students, out of the more than 35,000 students in the district, to and from 57 school buildings and special programs as far away as Palatine, Des Plaines and Woodstock.

Sometimes, drivers said, there aren't enough bus assistants to pair with special education students — including some who need an assistant to prevent them from self-harm during the drives.

It's not that the district isn't trying to address the staffing shortage, district officials said in a written statement.

“We are continually looking to bring additional qualified drivers and assistants to join our team through job fairs, referral bonuses and other recruitment efforts,” the statement reads. “Since the COVID-19 pandemic, U-46, like many school districts across Illinois, has faced a shortage of bus drivers.”

District officials also indicated in the statement they are hopeful that opening negotiations for a new or modified union contract with the bus drivers will result in solutions with which everyone can agree.