Vashon school bus drivers are scheduled to vote this week on whether or not to strike as they face contract negotiations with an employer many drivers say underpays them.

A strike is not imminent, said Jason Powell, the business agent of the Teamsters Local Union No. 763, but the vote, conducted by secret ballot, is a necessary procedural move that would give the union the authority to call a strike if upcoming negotiations fail. A simple majority vote is needed before a strike can be authorized.

“I have to follow internal union processes — that I have crossed all the “T”s and dotted all the “I”s,” Powell  said.

The vote is set for 10 a.m. Thursday with contract negotiations to follow Monday, Sept. 23, Powell said.

The bus drivers’ unhappiness with First Student, the bus company that serves Vashon, came to light last month when bus drivers in downtown Vashon handed out fliers, headed with the title “Labor dispute could impact student transportation.” At the time, Powell said island drivers on average earn 5 percent less than the drivers employed by First Student in other school districts. And in Seattle, he said, First Student drivers start out earning $13 per hour and after nine years can earn up to $19.10 per hour.

On Vashon, drivers start at $11.10 per hour and can earn $13.45 per hour after five years, with the exception of  a small number of senior employees grandfathered in under a previous pay scale.

Looking  to the negotiations next week,  Powell said he expects that either First Student and the union will reach an agreement on Monday or that the process will become more drawn out and another bargaining date will be set, likely for the beginning of October.

Powell noted that Vashon bus drivers are part of this community and will not do anything to surprise islanders or the school board, but they want an equitable wage.

“These drivers do not want this multi-national company to push them around anymore,” he said.

A representative for First Student, which is based in Cincinnati, Ohio, could not be reached for comment on Monday. However, in an earlier email to The Beachcomber, Jen Biddinger, a spokeswoman for the company, said that First Student has been bargaining in good faith with the union representatives and is fully committed to reaching a resolution.

Vashon Island School District Superintendent Michael Soltman reiterated his previous comments, encouraging both sides to go to the table and look for a solution that will meet the needs of each party.

If a strike is called, Powell said First Student would likely call in drivers from elsewhere, but that he hopes islanders would honor the strike.

“I would ask the community to stand with the drivers,” he said.