When we heard last week that school bus drivers were handing out fliers outside Thriftway, we thought at first that they must have been holding some sort of fundraiser. We were surprised to learn that this normally quiet group of islanders was upset over its contract negotiations.

If Vashon’s school bus drivers and their union representative are to be believed, the 15 or so drivers, all of them islanders, make less than their counterparts around the state. Vashon drivers work for First Student, the largest school bus provider in the country and the one that holds the Vashon School District’s contract for school bus service. Despite living and working in a community with a high cost of living, the drivers’ pay, they say, is lower than the average for First Student drivers who work in other school districts. On Vashon, bus drivers currently start at about $11 per hour and can earn up to $13.45. In Seattle, drivers also employed by First Student start at $13 per hour — near the rate Vashon tops out at — and can earn up to $19.10, more than $5 an hour more than the top Vashon wage. On Vashon, there is also a small group of drivers that was grandfathered in under an old pay scale and earns the top wage of $16.40 per hour. While that pay seems reasonable, island drivers are now asking that all of them be given the chance to top out at $16.40 after several years on the job, a move they say would also put their pay scale more in line with that of other First Student drivers around the state. First Student, however, suggested it wouldn’t budge on that front.

We know that the issue of bus drivers’ wages isn’t simple and wages depend in part on what funding First Student receives from each district that it contracts with. Vashon’s school district already subsidizes transportation by about $80,000 a year and we believe they would be hard pressed to offer more. It would be helpful to know how Vashon’s school bus funding and its contract with First Student compare with other districts such as Seattle, but according to the Vashon drivers’ union, First Student has refused to provide that information. The company hasn’t replied to our requests for comment, and likely couldn’t comment on current negotiations anyway, so there may be a side to this story we simply haven’t heard. But what the bus drivers are asking for sounds reasonable on its face— to be paid equally to their counterparts around the state.

Our school bus drivers have important jobs and hold children’s safety in their hands every school day. Their cost of living on Vashon is just as high, if not higher, than it is in other parts of the state. It’s in the community’s interest to keep strong employees in the drivers’ seats. We’re glad First Student agreed to keep negotiating, and we’re glad the drivers haven’t resorted to a strike. We hope the parties can come to an agreement that’s fair for the drivers and financially viable for the company. And if they can’t, we hope that when First Student’s contract is up for renewal by the district, school officials examine whether another company might offer Vashon a better deal.