Hope talks will avert school bus strike

TALKS are due to take place tomorrow at the Labour Relations Commission between Bus Éireann and school bus driver representatives to avert a threatened one-day strike next Friday, which could affect 14,000 schoolchildren.

More than 200 school bus drivers, who are members of SIPTU, have served notice for limited industrial action in protest over pay and conditions.

The part-time drivers claim they are among the lowest-paid workers in the public transport and education sectors, with hourly rates of €11.66. They are also protesting at not being allowed the same entitlements to pensions, sick pay and other benefits as other Bus Éireann drivers.

SIPTU is seeking parity with full-time drivers at the company who are on pay scales from €13.15 to €15.23 per hour. About 90% of the school bus service is contracted out to private bus owners. However, Bus Éireann employs about 550 drivers on a part-time basis, of which about 220 are members of SIPTU.

Union spokesman Michael Halpenny said employment conditions were so poor Bus Éireann was unable to recruit new drivers when vacancies arose in Limerick and Galway in recent months.

“It says a lot about our social priorities that senior politicians recently received pay awards worth twice as much as many school drivers earn,” said Mr Halpenny. He said the current rate of pay did not reflect the importance of the job when drivers had the responsibility of providing safe transport for thousands of children.

If it goes ahead, the one-day stoppage will affect about 14,000 out of 136,000 students who are provided with a bus service by Bus Éireann. Schoolchildren living in rural areas are likely to be affected the most, especially along the west coast, the midlands and south east.

Last night, a Bus Éireann spokesperson claimed the threatened industrial action by the bus drivers was unjustified as their claims had already been rejected by both a rights commissioner and the Labour Relations Commission (LRC).

The spokesperson said any disruption to school bus services would be regrettable and would cause unnecessary disruption and inconvenience.

While welcoming tomorrow’s talks at the LRC, a SIPTU spokesperson said the strike notice would remain in place as the union had been campaigning on the issue for the last five years.

He explained the workers had only decided to take strike action after all industrial relations machinery had been exhausted.