Hi everyone I've been logged out for awhile and didn't realize I had all the new input.
I want to update you all on the issue I had in my terminal about State Inspections.
I had six people that were written up by the state and had to go for hearings to decide on the fate of their school bus certificates. Of the six, two had their certs pulled for 30 days, with probation for up to a year. If there are other issues they could lose it for additional time. Four cases were dismissed.
Over the years at our terminal we have been instructed not to write up things try to work with the garage to fix it off of written paperwork. Messages such as "I've ordered the part" have been told to the drivers and been told one the part comes in we will fix it etc etc. Some of the issues dealt with rear engine emergency windows that people were told "those windows are a pain. If you continously open and close the wires break, the handles break etc". Drivers were led to believe that they should only check these on occasion especially since before all inspections the buses were thoroughly checked for defects by people aiding in the inspection process. This was not true this time. Buses were pulled in and defects were found. The lead inspector was PO'd to say the least and wanted to know who the drivers were.
All drivers should be checking their buses and if there is a defect write or log it into their zonars. Keep a copy of the defect for your own records. You should be supplied a copy of the defect and or repair from your terminal. I know alot of people don't want to drive another bus especially if it is a piece of crap but we need to cover all bases. If the next bus does not pass inspection write it up. Why should we be covering up defects for the company? Why shouldn't we as professional drivers make the company fix these issues. In some terminals there are brand new buses. In others they are so old they need to be put down for good.
I drove a bus from a totally different terminal that was brought out to me (at my destination) that I wrote up for three emergency windows and hatches while I had to drive it. I also wrote it up for what I thought was a seriour vibration in the front end. When I met the driver who drives the bus on a regular basis he stated "am I suppose to write it up for two years?" I told him he should have refused to drive it two years ago.
Check your state safety laws for CDL/School Bus information. In our state you as a driver can refuse to drive a bus for safety issues. There is no way in a court hearing that you would lose this case.
We are all professional drivers that carry a very precious cargo. We carry the future. We carry children who depend on us to watch out for their well being.
RESPECT YOURSELF AND YOUR JOB! DO WHAT IS RIGHT.
Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself. If management threatens you go to your steward and file a grievance.
This is a very important issue please do your jobs. That's what the company teaches us with safety meetings.
We can do our jobs safely and enjoy them still. I love my job and I will never give up the fight to make it safe and enjoyable for all.
Good Luck!
Donna
Thanks for the report. I
Thanks for the report. I have read the report and it was satisfactory. I wish you will do your work more efficiently.
rims
Thanks for adding the
Thanks for adding the update. I have passed a very happy time here. All information here is good.
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donna you sound like a
donna you sound like a caring bus driver do you recall when laidlaw use to hand out handouts railroad crossings, proper walkarounds all associated withrefresher classes and monthly have you ever noticed alot is make up as you go checking break lights behind buses rather out in middle of parking lot oh you too can read and guess punctuation noun verb adj adv my point if this company f/s decided to take its time adding to laidlaws handbook why didnt they give a block of instruction on alarm system rather figure it out your self, point; that is how management deals with jobbook my guestion is how does this company allow so many task finders to run a office while management reaps the benefits.also writing up gigs is easy with a standard what to look for by dot guidelines i suppose that is sitting in managements office she or he yeah are there male managers out there? she will be ready to write driver up when something decidably is wrong conveinant for a rightup dot is going to be enlightened choose www,transportation site for further ref. your co worker upstate n.y. please dont take offense of my style I am a professional through and through.
donna you sound like a
donna you sound like a caring bus driver do you recall when laidlaw use to hand out handouts railroad crossings, proper walkarounds all associated withrefresher classes and monthly have you ever noticed alot is make up as you go checking break lights behind buses rather out in middle of parking lot oh you too can read and guess punctuation noun verb adj adv my point if this company f/s decided to take its time adding to laidlaws handbook why didnt they give a block of instruction on alarm system rather figure it out your self, point; that is how management deals with jobbook my guestion is how does this company allow so many task finders to run a office while management reaps the benefits.also writing up gigs is easy with a standard what to look for by dot guidelines i suppose that is sitting in managements office she or he yeah are there male managers out there? she will be ready to write driver up when something decidably is wrong conveinant for a rightup dot is going to be enlightened choose www,transportation site for further ref. your co worker upstate n.y. please dont take offense of my style I am a professional through and through.
I was originally a Laidlaw
I was originally a Laidlaw driver and stayed after First Student took over. We always did a pre-trip inspection before runs in the morning and the afternoon. We also always did post-trip inspections. The Laidlaw employee handbook used to state that we were supposed to report to work 15 minutes prior to our departure time. We were paid for those 15 minutes to do our pre-trips. This continued when First Student took over. I remember seeing something in the employee handbook that said we were expected to do pretrips every time we did a run. Now we have a new manager that recently took over. She says the state does not require us to do a full pretrip in the afternoon. SHe says we will not be paid for doing a pretrip and that we do not get paid for doing any post-trips. She says it only takes 5 minutes to do a pre-trip so we only get paid for 5 minutes. Our fleet is very poorly maintained. The buses are constantly breaking down. Every day there are at least 2 buses that break down. Many of us often run late in the afternoons getting to the high school because we get to work and do the 5-minute "walk around" and find something wrong. Then we have to take a spare bus (if there is one available, most times there isn't) and then we are told it doesn't need to be pre-tripped because someone else already did it??? They refuse to pay us for our time. We are pressured to drive defective buses. We recently got Zonar installed in our buses. We had it on the buses for about 3 weeks before we were trained to use it. We don't get to see any sign of a mechanic's signature showing that a licensed mechanic signed off on the repairs from previously reported defects. We have a union (Teamsters) they don't seem to know how to help us with any of these issues. It's very scary and frustrating. Many people come to work extra early on their own time to do full pre-trips even though they don't get paid for it. Some people just show up at the designated time and do a quick walk-around so they don't run late. Some people just don't do the pre-trips. This is very dangerous stuff. The safety director told us she "has never heard of a yard that doesn't do pre-trips or post-trips.", then when we mentioned that our manager told us we only had to do a pre-trip in the morning she started to stammer and stutter....errr....ummm....uhh....then said..."I can't really comment on that" and that was the end of that. I think it's time for me to get out of this business once and for all.
In the area that Hodgkins,
In the area that Hodgkins, Illinois First Student services near my home, in order to get from the west side of the Des Plaines River to the east side, there are four ways to go two of them are bridges that are rated at 5 tons. I have seen Fire Trucks go over them as well as School Buses. The rating system is the weight of a standing vehicle or weight. Think about it, with a bus you are dividing the weight of the bus with the front and rear axle. Your weight is spread out. By the time the bridge would flex at all from your bus weight, providing that you are not waiting on that bridge for a traffic light, you would be over the bridge on the opposite side. So it is 5 tons per axle.
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I also worked for Laidlaw
I also worked for Laidlaw originally. Whatever you have in the zonar is suppose to be what you do on your pretrip. Zonar has a pre-trip and post-trip choice. First Student asked zonar people to put into the device information that would be included on the state vir report. Our first am trip we do a pre-trip. When we come back we do a post trip. The afternoon is the same pre-trip and post trip. Any other route that is done such as Kindergarten is done the same way. If someone else uses a bus they will do a pre and post trip.
Why would anyone put their ID on a bus that has been pre tripped by someone else without checking it? Not everyone does the pre-trips like they are suppose to. If you have to wait to have a mechanic fix a problem before you leave or change buses because of faulty equipment, it is not your problem it is managements problem that they cannot fulfill their contract agreements. People that come in to do their pre trips are working and should be getting paid. Anyone who is not getting paid for their work time should be grieving it. If you are being forced to drive a bus call your rep and tell them this. It is your license. Your manager will deny that they ever told you to drive it. If a bus is stopped on the road by DOT and the defects on the bus are not noted on the zonar, the bus driver will be responsible for the report and their certificates pulled. We had drivers here that had their certs pulled for 30 days because they checked off paper virs that their buses were ok.
No one should drive a bus that has a "safety" issue. You can refuse to drive the bus. Also if you write up a bus for a defect you are suppose to get a paper from the mechanics that states the repair has been made.
We are having the same issues here with the buses constantly breaking down. We are running out of spares. Parts are hard to replace because the company wants a book written to request a part. They need all kinds of information before they will send payment for a part to be purchased. Everyone here is getting the shaft.
As I have said before, drivers here now have the teamsters, we cannot be forced to drive a bus with a safety issue. This was even true before but everyone was afraid to say I am not driving that bus. Mechanics and management have to work with us instead of pushing the problems on us. Check your CDL rules and you will find what your job requirement is. Good Luck.
Donna
All drivers should be
All drivers should be checking their buses and if there is a defect write or log it into their zonars. Keep a copy of the defect for your own records. You should be supplied a copy of the defect and or repair mcdst practice test mcitp braindumps from your terminal. I know alot of people don't want to drive another bus especially if it is a piece of crap but we need to cover all bases. If the next bus does not pass inspection write it up. Why should we be covering up defects for the company? Why shouldn't we as professional drivers make the company fix these issues. In some terminals there are brand new buses. In others they are so old they need to be put down for good.