Guest columnist: Professionalism, not privatization, needed for school bus safety
Source: By Frank Flynn, Daily Advertiser (LA), Feb 22, 2006
When transporting our children to and from school, the Lafayette Democratic Party believes the first priority of the school board must be the safety of our children. For the safety of our children, we believe in professionalism, not privatization......... Across the country, privatization has resulted in greater risk to schoolchildren who are forced to ride in buses driven by unprofessional, low-paid drivers. The profits of privatization are taken from the community and sent to out-of-state companies. A study commissioned by the U.S. Secretary of Labor's Task Force on Excellence in State and Local Government concluded that privatization does not necessarily result in lower costs and often the quality of service deteriorates when profit becomes the primary motivation. Contractors often provide inferior wages and benefits, which attract less qualified drivers. Paying inferior wages and benefits and hiring less qualified drivers increases the profit of the contractor, takes money out of the community, and places at risk the safety our children. Without adequate pay and benefits, private contractors experience a high turnover rate of drivers. This creates problems when new drivers are unfamiliar with school bus routes. Privatization also diminishes public accountability because the school board members cannot directly address parents' and students' complaints.