“Enough is Enough” - First Student Calls for Strike to End After Bus Fires
Friday, October 12, 2018
First Student is calling for an end to the bus strike the day after nine buses were damaged or destroyed by fire at the First Student bus yard on Thursday night.
As GoLocalProv reported, “the total cost of the damage may reach $750,000.”
"This strike needs to end today. We're ready to operate our buses on Monday and restart the level of service the City of Providence deserves and expects. We're ready to welcome back any and all of the drivers who want to get back to work. We will assist with our drivers' safe entrance to our yard and provide access to the vehicles they need to operate their neighborhood routes. Enough is enough - we have made repeated, daily attempts this week to resolve this dispute with the Teamsters which have been rejected or ignored. The students, families, and City cannot keep waiting. We need to move forward on Monday,” said First Student spokesperson Frank McMahon.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTFirst Student and Teamsters Local 251 enter their third week of the strike that has canceled all bus service for more than 9,000 Providence school children including those with special needs.
Latest on Bus Strike
This week saw the ACLU of Rhode Island, along with two other civil rights organizations on Wednesday taking three separate legal steps with the R.I. Department of Education (RIDE) on behalf of students with disabilities who are caught up in the ongoing Providence school bus strike.
The complaints allege that the failure of the school district to honor its responsibility under the students’ Individual Education Plans (IEPs) to provide transportation to and from school violates federal and state laws protecting the students’ rights.
“Although the strike presents a challenge, it does not absolve the school district from meeting its obligations to students with disabilities. The District may not foist its obligation upon parents by requiring they find, and initially fund, alternate transportation. The law is clear on this issue," said ACLU attorney Christine Marinello. "With the strike now in its third week, the District must take proactive steps to meet its legal obligations – in Jeremy’s case and those of other students whose rights are being similarly violated.”
Also on Wednesday, the Providence School Committee moved forward to issue a request for proposals in order to potentially contract with a new vendor.
Presently, the existing contract with First Student has expired and the extension has yet to receive all necessary approvals. Over the past three years -- 2015 to 2017, First Student has been paid in excess of $30 million.
Related Slideshow: 10 Things You Need to Know About Providence School Bus Strike
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