Sometimes drivers will do a field trip or something, but I had a chunk of time to myself., Sounds breezy, but Mike and most other drivers are paid by the number of hours worked. School Bus Drivers operate **Monday - Friday**, from September until the end of June, that's right, **summers off. School bus drivers make $37,607 per year on average, or $18.08 per hour, in the United States. Epstein said that New York should follow the lead of other states such as Connecticut, which adopted executive order 7R, requiring school districts to negotiate amendments to contracts with student transportation providers with the goal of sustaining continuity of service to make payments to transportation providers so that they may compensate their active employees and provide them health insurance.. It looks like your browser does not have JavaScript enabled. To get started, you will need a Commercial Driver's License (CDL) which is the same license required for driving trucks, and two endorsements (passenger and school bus) The specific requirements for a CDL and endorsements vary among states, so before you start the process you should check with your local drivers license office as well as the school district where you want to work. This may include escorting small children across roads and highways. To create this article, 21 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. Would that means you would need to save money to make it through the breaks? Bus drivers despise the following 20 things that passengers do. Since you want to be a school bus driver, youll take your test in a school bus. Safety Handbook), please email ResearchAndPlanning@chp.ca.gov. At the time, many of the drivers dismissed her statement as being just another one of her crazy rants, because many of the drivers working then had already been driving a school bus for 10 years or more. CT transit bus driver injured in collision with tractor-trailer in West Hartford Hartford's top paid public school administrators oversee 16,827 students. While ZipRecruiter is seeing weekly wages as high as $827 and as low as $298, the majority of School Bus Driver wages currently range between $567 (25th percentile) to $731 (75th percentile) across the United States. While that eats up more time than one might think, drivers who live close to the bus garage can drop off their wheels and do whatever they like for a good portion of the day. Rehab Specialist, Paratransit Bus Driver, Parts Consultant, Patrol Officer, Based on HR-reported data: a national average with a geographic. Kailua-Kona, HI, ALLURE LIFESTYLE COMMUNITIES - Palmer Bus Service. And parents can sometimes let a little money change hands in exchange for a few perks. The states and districts with the lowest mean bus driver salaries are Alaska ($60,400), Washington ($59,880), Massachusetts ($56,930), and California ($54,560). In the United States, the average School Bus Driver income is $34,963 per year, or $16.81 per hour, according to Payscale. The law also allows contractors to meet the payroll and fixed costs obligations of the contracted service provider. Some states charge a combined fee for the written tests and the CLP. NOTE: There are six catagories of Special Driver Certificate, including: School Bus Driver,Youth Bus Driver, School Pupil Activity Bus Driver, General Public Paratransit Vehicle, Farm Labor Vehicle and Vehicle forDevelopmentlly Disabled Persons. Kim Morrison Its a serious and often thankless job. You'll be tested on your visual search methods, the appropriate use of signals, your ability to control the vehicle's speed depending on weather or traffic conditions and appropriately position the vehicle when turning or changing lanes. Most drivers do one of the following during the summer: Drive Summer School or Charter Routes. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. If you have children or grandchildren, some districts may allow you to let them ride with you. Your email address will not be published. necessary licenses and endorsements to complete my training. This makes for a very bouncy, harsh, uncomfortable ride, which can be fatiguing for a driver who has to deal with it all day long. Are there any medical restrictions on becoming a bus driver with GoAhead London? Being a bus driver is a good job because of the pay and benefits but the work /home balance is not good for a family person because of the different shift patterns e.g earlys, middles and lates. Required fields are marked *. This may include escorting small children across roads and highways. Theres a reason that great school bus drivers are difficult to find and keep: driving a school bus requires more than just driving skill and patience. $24.36 / Hour for Driver Substitute; $27.07 / Hour for Transportation Specialist and Relief Drivers (regular driver) Hours of Work. (School Employees Retirement System) w/14% company match at retirement - Have the middle of . We do the same thing in the afternoon, just in reverse order. Several School Bus Drivers also transport students and teachers on field trips or to sporting events. Gresham, OR, Avis Budget Group - What does a School Bus Driver earn on a per hour basis? You must answer at least 80 percent of the questions correctly on both the general and endorsement tests to pass. Yes, you will have a Class B CDL after the training, but if you have been out of work and have no money, it is going to be a while before you get a check for this job. Individualize employee pay based on unique job requirements and personal qualifications. The tests must however be passed before your CPL expires. 2. They should get it. In some states youll receive your CDL right then, while others mail it to you. Additionally, School Bus Driver requires a valid driver's license. The average School Bus Driver salary in the United States is $36,952 as of January 26, 2023, but the range typically falls between $29,831 and $45,033. wikiHow is a wiki, similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. This could be part of the beginning of the end, as New York Gov. In what amount do school bus driver jobs pay on a weekly basis? Certain conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure or arthritis will render you ineligible to become a commercial driver. While ZipRecruiter is seeing weekly wages as high as $827 and as low as $298, the majority of School Bus Driver wages currently range between $567 (25th percentile) to $731 (75th percentile) across the United States. To get a school bus drivers license, start by getting a Department of Transportation physical. Approved. COVID-19 relief under the $2.2 trillion CARES Act included a $30.75 billion Education Stabilization Fund, whereby federal aid will be distributed to states, with each state receiving a calculated amount. Bus Drivers in the Los Angeles Unified School District make $51,000 per year, or $25 per hour, which is 58 percent more than the national average of $28,000 per year for all Bus Drivers and 26 percent less than the national average wage for all working Americans. If you plan to drive school buses with air brakes, you also must pass an additional knowledge test on air brake operation. Bus drivers are not paid during school holidays or for teachers days. Theres a magnetic sign at the front of the bus, and at the end of the route you have to walk down the aisle and stick it up so it shows out of the back window, Mike says. Do school bus drivers get paid in the summer? As of May 25, 2021, the average weekly pay for a School Bus Driver in the United States is $652 a week. Most drivers that received gifts from parents are the drivers that broke the rules for those parents. Such contraband might include chewing gum and open drinks. Virginia Department of Education spokesman Charles Pyle shared how the commonwealth agency is updating policies for its school buses and drivers. There are additional excursions available after school (sports games). In many cases, extra work, like field trips, pays far less than the amount we get for driving our regular routes. Your email address will not be published. Works under the close direction of senior personnel in the functional area. The duties of a school bus driver arent just confined to driving. Typically reports to a supervisor. Comments are moderated and may not appear for 24 hours or more. School bus drivers on the lower end of that spectrum, the bottom 10% to be exact, make roughly $30,000 a year, while the top 10% makes $46,000. 19 Take an inordinate amount of time to count their fare, causing everyone to be held up. School bus drivers earn less per hour than other CDL class drivers on the road. Some children will bring you things of their own volition such as a flower or candy bar, Cindy says. As of May 25, 2021, the average weekly pay for a School Bus Driver in the United States is $652 a week. Many bus drivers who are offered health and other benefits cannot afford them or, as we often say, they are working for benefits because there is nothing much left of their check after the premiums for them are deducted. Must have at least 20/40 vision and a 70-degree field of vision in each eye. Here are six key reasons that school bus drivers hang up their keys. Prince Georges Schools Turns to Transfinder, Update: President Trump Signs Latest $484B COVID-19 Aid Package, A Balanced Approached Needed to Achieve Cleaner Emissions, Texas School District Celebrates Technology, Green Energy and Positive Employee Culture, Propane School Buses: Clean Energy is Ready to Roll. The lack of payment drastically jeopardizes the resumption of transportation services for many New York school districts, which is very alarming because pupil transportation is an essential government service that needs to be ready to respond at a moments notice to when school resumes again, whenever that may be, she added. Now that I've rewritten your question into something resembles English, I will start by simply saying "No, they don't." However, it depends on the company. Calls for help came from NYSBCA, as well as the many unions who represent school bus drivers and workers, have been vociferous, and worked with federal, state and local representatives, about the need for school transportation contractors and their workers to stay funded and allow them to continue to receive not only a paycheck but also health insurance benefits which many rely on. And the state has approved off-site food delivery for students. But Mike says they can often pinpoint the culprit. Sense of humour and a positive outlook are essential. To drive a school bus in the U.S., you must have a commercial drivers license (CDL) with endorsements for driving a passenger vehicle (P) and driving a school bus (S). To learn which documents you need to bring to apply for your permit, keep reading! When I started driving a school bus quite a few years ago, there was a cantankerous old bus driver who always used to say, "There will never be another 30-year bus driver here.". I give my express consent authorizing TruckersReport and its. And because of that, very simple safety rule enforcement is a battle. The CHP revised its first aid examination in July 2015. The starting hourly wage for a bus driver in Picayune is $16. School Bus Driver - $23.83 per hour School Bus Attendant - $16.85 per hour Transportation Van Driver - $17.79 per hour View our salary scales Drivers are eligible for annual step increases plus market scale adjustments based upon School Board approval. This could be part of the "beginning of the end," as New York Gov. (Copyright 2023 Salary.com) View full job description, Employers: Job Description Management Tool. Each state also requires proof of state residency and provides a list of documents you can provide as proof to satisfy that requirement. Programs Services > Programs > School Bus Program, Asian Pacific Islander Community Outreach - Illegal Street Racing, Asian Pacific Islander Outreach Program - Statistics, Commercial Vehicle Safety Summit Presentations Online, Crash Data Collection For Commercial Vehicles, Hazardous Agricultural Materials Certificate, Partners in Safety - HazMat Information for Shippers and Carriers, Impaired Driving - Public Awareness Programs, CHP 295, Special Certificate Application(PDF), CHP 295J - Applicant/Carrier Document Checklist (PDF), CHP 296 - Application for School Bus Contractor's License (PDF), CHP 296A - How to Obtain or Renew a School Bus Contractor's License (PDF), https://oal.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/166/2020/04/2020-Notice-Register-Number-14-Z-April-3-2020.pdf, California Association of School Transportation Officials - Home (castoways.org). The CHP takes school bus and farm labor vehicle safety seriously. 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