Bibb County bus drivers could see pay increase with new budget. Will vacancies be filled?
The Bibb County School District lost seven bus drivers Wednesday and Thursday, the last day of school and the first day of summer break.
BCSD was left with 136 full-time bus drivers as of Thursday, according to Anthony Jackson, the district’s director of transportation. BCSD needs 150 to cover all routes.
Jackson said the 14-seat vacancy may seem like an insignificant number, but it’s a big challenge for the school district to solve before the next school year begins.
“We have 136 drivers, but we have 144 planned routes. That alone lets you know the challenges that we would face on a day-to-day basis with getting all the routes covered if we were actually operating today,” he said.
Jackson, who has worked in the school system for 23 years, said gaining and losing drivers over the summer isn’t unusual — nor is the district’s ongoing bus driver shortage, which reflects a national issue.
As the district faces new vacancies, the district has already considered raises for bus drivers and bus monitors.
How much do Bibb County bus drivers, monitors make?
The Bibb County Board of Education’s recent tentative adoption of the 2024-25 school year budget includes a pay raise up to 10% for bus drivers and monitors with severe salary gaps.
“The budget simply allows us to remain competitive in the marketplace for these positions,” Jackson said. “Now, the challenge becomes to just get out there and find those individuals who are interested in this type of work.”
Chief Financial Officer Eric Bush said those in line for a raise are in positions making 30% less than the average salary compared to similar-sized school districts in the surrounding Middle Georgia area. The comparisons were identified in the BCSD salary study, he added.
Bibb County’s current starting pay for bus drivers with zero experience is $20.49 an hour. Jackson said the 10% increase would raise the hourly wage to $22.54.
The current starting pay for BCSD bus monitors is $12.49 an hour, in which the 10% raise would increase their hourly pay to $13.74, he added.
The current pay range for Houston County School District bus drivers is $20.87 to $32.72, depending on their experience. Bus monitors in HCSD earn between $12.03 and $18.86, according to district spokesperson Jennifer Jones.
But Houston County’s 2025 proposed budget includes a 5.16% cost of living raise for all employees, and those numbers will increase next school year if the Houston County Board of Education approves, Jones said in an email.
Even if Bibb County meets its target of filling all 150 bus driver positions, Jackson said the next challenge would be determining who is available each day for work because attendance problems play a role in everything.
No money for more bus monitors
In early May, Macon parent Heaven Smith raised concern that her son’s BCSD school bus didn’t have a bus monitor after an alleged bullying incident.
Smith recently said she spoke with Jackson about the incident and that his response referenced the school district’s lack of funding for more bus monitors.
All 35 full-time bus monitor positions in the Bibb County School District have been filled, but there aren’t enough to cover all 44 special needs bus routes, Jackson said.
“On the outside, I could see why it may not make sense, but it is way more detailed and deeper than that ... because you have to understand the needs of students versus wants and desires,” Jackson said when asked why the district doesn’t have more bus monitor positions.
Jackson said the pay raise for bus monitors and drivers would mostly impact transportation efficiency and possibly safety issues.
“If we’re able to hire more people, then we’re able to reduce ride times and reduce load counts, which in some ways you can maybe tie those factors back to safety.”
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