Bus company terminating SLPS contract year early
ST. LOUIS – Missouri Central School Bus will be ending their bus services for St. Louis Public Schools in July.
A notification letter indicated the company and school district negotiated in good faith but could not reach an agreement. A district spokesperson characterized the decision as “abandoning a contract” and said that the company is utilizing a clause to terminate the agreement before it expires.
Missouri Central School Bus began providing bus service for the district in 2022. The contract was scheduled to conclude at the end of the 2024–2025 school year.
The end of operations will result in approximately 332 full and part-time workers losing their jobs at the end of the current school year.
The announcement comes following a recent sick-out over safety concerns and racism allegations. One mechanic reported that a noose was placed in his work area.
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According to a school district statement, the bus company said the controversy “…provided irreparable harm to their reputation and said they could no longer work with St. Louis Public Schools.”
The statement from SLPS indicates the bus company also cited an inability to maintain enough drivers as a factor in its decision. Bus services will continue through the summer school period which ends July 12.
In December 2023, in an effort to continue the contract in accordance with the terms of our
contract with St. Louis Public Schools regarding driver wage reimbursement, we requested
additional money to address unprecedented industry inflation and a nationwide school bus
driver shortage. Unfortunately, despite good faith efforts by both sides, we were unable to
negotiate mutually agreeable terms to continue the contract. Since this process was included in
the January 2022 bus contract with SLPS, it is neither a demand nor abandonment of the
contract. Consistent with the terms of our existing agreement, MCSB accordingly provided six
months advance notification to SLPS that our partnership will conclude at the end of the 2023-
2024 school year.We will help the district make a smooth transition into the fall. It has been our privilege to serve
SLPS students, parents, and administrators. We also want to express our sincere gratitude to
the MCSB team in St. Louis as we will be looking at all opportunities for our employees to
remain with the company.For the past two school years, Missouri Central School Bus has been proud to provide service to
the St Louis Public Schools community. Amid an unprecedented national driver shortage, our
300+ employees have worked tirelessly every day to safely transport the children of St.
Louis. We are proud of the work our drivers, monitors, technicians and staff delivered in a very
difficult post COVID environment.Scott Allen
Regional Operations Manager
Missouri Central School BusMissouri Central School Bus
The district plans to release a request for proposals this week to begin the process of finding a replacement for next school year.
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