Updated 3:12 p.m. Nov. 7: This story has been updated to include additional comments by FBISD staff.
Fort Bend ISD announced that effective Nov. 4, all full-time and part-time district school bus drivers would receive a pay increase from $15.48 to $18 per hour.
“Our bus drivers play a critical role in our district’s mission, and FBISD remains committed to offering competitive wages so that we can continue to provide an educational system that will allow all students to reach their full potential,” FBISD Chief Operations Officer Oscar Perez said in a statement.
Community Impact Newspaper reported in its November 2019 issue that FBISD’s driver pay can be a determining factor when trying to recruit new drivers.
“We’ve interviewed people that said they’ll take the job, but negotiation of the pay is the last thing that they do, and once they find out, then they’ll turn us down,” Deidra Oliver, assistant director at FBISD’s Hodges Ben bus terminal, said in that story.
Oliver said since the announcement, bus driver attendance has been up and people have walked off the street to apply. She said there has also been a very positive reaction among current drivers.
Increasing FBISD bus driver wages makes the district’s pay more competitive with neighboring districts; for example, Katy ISD’s starting driver pay is $17.17, and Lamar CISD’s is $18.14.
Additionally, the starting bus driver wage at GoldStar Transit Inc., the transportation company with which FBISD currently contracts some services, is $18.
Community Impact Newspaper previously reported that the district has 33 full-time bus driver openings. Interested applicants can learn more and apply by visiting www.fortbendisd.com.
