"Working families in Maryland must have the right to organize to ensure that they work in a safe environment, earn a fair and decent wage, and have access to affordable health care." MARTIN O'MALLEY Governor of Maryland speaking as Mayor of Baltimore

For school bus workers, it is critical to enlist the support of prominent political leaders while working to form a union. Through building relationships with these key political leaders, school bus workers have been successful in achieving union representation and retaining their work. Here are some notable examples of how political outreach has made a difference:

BALTIMORE
First Student school bus workers in Baltimore, Maryland know the importance of political connectedness. As Teamsters, they were able to call upon their political allies to take a stand for what is right.

In May, 2006, bus drivers from First Student in Baltimore met with Mayor Martin O’Malley at Teamsters Local 570 to convey their concerns over anti-union tactics employed by the company during the struggle to secure the Teamsters as their bargaining representative. The workers had invited O’Malley to the speak-out, where they told him their stories, and he in turn, responded to their concerns. O’Malley expressed to the workers that it is un-American for companies to abuse and coerce their workers in organizing campaigns.

"I found the meeting with the employees of First Student to be highly informative," O'Malley said. "Working families in Maryland must have the right to organize to ensure that they work in a safe environment, earn a fair and decent wage, and have access to affordable health care."

In addition to gaining the public support of O’Malley, who is now Governor, the workers also met with, and obtained the support of various local political and community leaders, like Baltimore City Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. The Baltimore City Public School System has also endorsed key worker retention language.

The Baltimore City Public School System has stated that their primary goal is to: “…ensure continuity of transportation service to BCPSS students as we transition to other contractors the service currently operated by First Student. An important part of our efforts to avert disruption of service is to make certain that the contractors that are awarded the First Student contracts have qualified, professional, and experienced staff to operate the routes and to service the buses. We readily acknowledge that, you, the First Student employees, are essential to the attainment of this goal.”

They stated further that, “…we will encourage and recommend to any contractor(s) that wishes to operate the First Student routes that they give every reasonable and serious consideration to hiring existing members of the First Student work force…the BCPSS both recognizes and greatly appreciates the contributions and efforts that you have made and continue to make in transporting students to and from school…”

SAN DIEGO:
In San Diego, drivers and mechanics with First Student were actively engaged, meeting with school board members who pledged their support. Sheila Jackson, Vice President of the San Diego Unified School District, stood up for the rights of First Student workers to organize. She wrote a letter to all First Student employees that expressed her heartfelt support and encouragement. In the letter Jackson stated:

“I hereby pledge to stand by working families that are trying to make life better by forming unions. I will urge employers to remain neutral, respect the choices for their employees and voluntarily recognize a union when a majority of workers indicated the desire to join one…On behalf of all working families in our community, I will raise my voice to help restore the chance to make life better and the freedom to join a union.”

The more than 140 San Diego school bus drivers and mechanics that Jackson stood by recently won their union election and are now Teamsters.

SEATTLE:
In April, the Seattle school board voted 6-1 to keep Laidlaw and First Student as providers of school bus transportation services for the city’s schools over a bid by Durham School Services. Mark Green, Chief Operating Officer for the school district, had recommended awarding the work to Durham. However, the board voted to keep the union Laidlaw workers serving their communities. The Teamsters reached out politically to various groups in order to apply pressure to retain the system’s contractors. The groups in Seattle whose endorsements were gained include: the Green Party, NAACP, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 587, Church Council of Greater Seattle, King County Labor Council, Seattle Education Association and Washington Education Association, among others.

School bus workers in Seattle have also found an ally in school board member, Sally Soriano.

Soriano was instrumental in putting together a labor harmony agreement several years ago, and has made sure the district enforces this agreement protecting worker rights. The labor harmony agreement was created to:

• Protect the rights of workers to organize in a union;
• Ensure worker retention; and
• Provide for the school district to void a contract with a transportation provider should the company fail to provide workers with their right to organize or follow retention rules.

Through political action, school bus workers across the nation are ensuring their right to organize for a brighter future!