bus driver

conducteur de car

mechanic

technician

mécanicien

First Student

I did the entire 2 weeks of unpaid training and completed and passed all the training and written testing and then right before the final driving test they decided to "release me from training". Really upsetting because I had passed all the testing, watched all the training videos, done all the paperwork properly and on time. I wanted to finish the program at least. I had memorized how to pre-trip a bus completely for that final road test. But honestly, the instructors really rubbed me the wrong way during the in-class and driving experiences with their strange commentary and excessive back seat driving and were constantly chain smoking cigarettes and blowing the smoke in my face while I was doing inspections. I was practically getting headaches from the excessive second hand smoke I was inhaling when I'm not a smoker and never been one. Honestly, if you're a smoker, you'll fit right in at this place. The instructors got so strange and bossy with me yet it was always me who ended up looking like the bad guy when all I did was listen to them and do exactly what they said. Whether it was checking my mirrors every 1 second (supposed to be 5 to 8 seconds) or doing something exactly the way the instructor wanted it, I would just do it. They were very critical of everything I did or didn't do and very fussy. I get that it's important to learn the proper procedures but it's also important to get a feel for the job without constantly being told that everything you are doing is incorrect. And I believe that I am a good driver and a very patient and polite individual, and I did commit to the training process. My patience was practically endless with these people and in the end it was all a waste of time and that upsets me. I can't be too surprised by how it concluded though, they weren't quality people from the beginning and that became more apparent as time went on. It's suiting that they would wait until the very last day of training to "release me from training" after I had done all the training videos, testing, paperwork, hours, etc. Still, really not cool to waste someone's time like that.
Edit: They have a severe driver shortage now that the year has started. I wonder why...?

Worked for this company as a bus driver for 2.5 years, with 2 of those years also working as a trainer. I enjoyed learning how to drive a school bus safely as the training portion was top notch. The trainers are extremely patient and know what they are doing with candidates. I learned valuable skills from these amazing trainers. I enjoyed training candidates how to drive a school bus too.

Management on the other hand chooses to get rid of any person at this company that brings a recommendation forward (such as management taking the 1.5 week training course) that goes against how they want to run the company. The management rarely interact with drivers in the yards to address any concerns and address safety issues. Trainers, who are also part of the safety team used to be able to talk to other drivers and help with safety issues or concerns, were told to not confront drivers and to only bring the issue to the safety supervisor and that person would deal with the drivers. Management have no experience with school buses yet seem to think they know everything about a school bus. The direct management have not ever trained on a school bus nor have they ever obtained their school bus endorsement.
The buses are old and breakdown frequently unless the driver continuously goes to the shop to get every little thing fixed which does take extra time out of their day since the majority of the time there is no spare buses and when there is, the spare bus is in even worse shape.
Recruitment is another problem with this company. Unless the company is offering a cash bonus to apply and attend training, the applications have been very poor and lacking in judgement . Not everyone is cut out to drive a school bus nor learn to drive a school bus.
This company could benefit and flourish from having management that have experience driving a school bus on a route, having management take care and retain the drivers who have been with the company for many, many years and have a updated fleet that drivers are required to upkeep to ensure all the buses are in great shape.

This was the second time for me working for a school bus company. This type of work is good for people who are parents of young children because you can bring them with you. I believe your children can be up to 6 yrs of age to travel with you? This was an amazing opportunity for myself when my kids were younger. BUT.. the one big BUT. The pay is LOW. And if your school has days off, so do you. There is a small way around that and that is to work with the Charters department. Now keep in mind most Charters your not able to bring your children with you.
This type of work is also good for people who are retired or are a student. You work a split shift, meaning you do your AM pickups and then your PM pickup from school and then home drop offs. 
This particular company was alright to work for, the staff was great when you needed help. But the units themselves are tired and understandably so. My unit was always in the shop having something fixed or overhauled. There are only so many mechanics and so much to do. So, please be kind to the mechanics! They can only do so much!! 
The other drivers seemed nice. No complaints there.
 I loved the kids I drove. Like all children, they had their good days and bad days. The bad days were yelling and screaming, not sitting down, walking on the seats while the bus was moving, hitting each other,  throwing things or tossing their garbage all over the unit.

Only words of advice I can give is, just breath. Remeber these kids come from all walks of life and are all having a different life experience. Every one of them are individuals. Talk to them kindly even when they are having a bad day. It DOES make a difference.
And if the kids are acting really rambunctious while you are driving, pull over in a safe area. The kids will stop and ask why you have pulled over LOL. Also, try not to yell at them. Not going to lie, it can be hard to do when you have 52 kids on the bus all yelling at each other to talk and laugh.

Best of luck to you all!

afternoon supervisor review:
(If you don't want to read - do not take this position. In a nut shell. Do not. Horrible job.)

The wage works out to 18/hr on salary which is nice on paper, but you work a heap ton of extra hours without extra pay. 

You will be given a work cell phone that you must answer 24/7. Even on holidays and days off. Even if you book time off. "Tough" said the boss. 

The union is horribly strict and there was constant confrontation between management and staff. 

Poor management. Could not give proper direction. A lot of unanswered questions. 

Office staff are not able to take sick days. I called in sick at 4am with a fever (did not work until 230pm) and was still told to come in because "it's not my problem that you're sick" said my boss. 

The work load will range from normal to tripple from a daily basis with zero added incentive. If your on salary you lose money every extra hour you work. You'll work a min 10 hour day every day. And get paid for 8 on salary. 

There is no common courtesy or general respect. The drivers and shop treat you like you're a complete idiot. Lots of tension. 

The company wasn't making money, so instead of filing for bankruptcy they decided to take half of everyone's pay cheques and hold them until you quit or were fired. To make their numbers look good on paper. This is 100% truthful. I will show my pay stubs to anyone doubting this. 

This company, overall, will not be successful in future endeavours. The wage:work load ratio is horrible. The staff environment is beyond unprofessional and they will expect the world from you but are not willing to give you anything in return. I do not and will never recommend this company to anyone ever.

Was with this company for 6 years. Saw 5 different LM's. Was given an amazing opportunity to succed and help the company, couldn't advance due to 
athorititarian thinking, managment didn't like free thinking or belief in keeping your own values and morals. Aka if you are not a yes "person", your hard work and opinions don't weigh anything.  
Management, even above location management, is closed minded. When there is a real concern with harassment or "demeaning behavior" it is over looked and washed under the  carpet as "delt with", because it easier to get rid of the person making the complaint then to deal with problem. Like earlier stated, anyone with a valid opinion gets fired due to "restructuring" and management changes hands so fast that the old crew never has a chance to solve issues before the new "hero" come to solve all. 
As a driver, again not valued. Saskatoon location drivers are amazing, management refuses to give a safety bonus or even recognition more than a $5 Tim's card.  First Student is a multi billion dollar corporation that values money and not the employee. "Corporarion", all for the big guy...
Current Drivers for First Student have the biggest hearts, and best interest for their students, every minute of every day.  Management of these drivers is highly inefficient. Drivers seem to manage themselves and hold each other accountable to utmost safest standards possible. 
Saskatoon location manager is not the person you want to work for. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Basicly left on your own to do your job. You follow their work and safety procedures and hand in your paper work in a timely manor. The company is very will to work around your schedule if possible!

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Making sure that the children act proper on a moving bus to limit major distractions while the bus is moving in the traffic and watching for pedestrians. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment and culture is very good. Over my years of working at First Student I have noticed that is a living part of the company it changes and adapts with the year to year to meet the environmental and cultural needs.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Being on time, then starting with my pretrip inspection of the bus. Then leaving the yard and timing may route so I meet my stops on the proper pick up times. Making sure I am following all posted speed limits and making sure my passengers are safe. Drop off the students at each school and are met with the school supervisor of the day. Then do a child check to make sure all children are dropped off, no sleeping children left on the bus. Return to base and making sure the fuel level is full or above the 1/2 full mark, and plenty of DEF. Report any problems to the machinics for major repairs.

The company culture has no integrity. It promotes itself as being in the business of "Safe Transport" for children, but in practice the only reason safety is maintained at all is because employees overcompensate for the company's consistent behaviour of putting money before safety.

In my time working there, I witnessed consistently repeating incidents to support this... including covering up or re-spinning news and events damaging to the company image, dismissal of people expressing concerns over questionable practices, exploitation of vulnerable workers, and many more.

I was with the company for five years and it had five general managers in that time. When I left, there wasn't one single person left in the main office from when I started five years before... all of them were gone and replaced... it was a completely different team in just five years, yet the work culture remained almost exactly the same with same chronic problems. The company has no memory of it's past performance because the problems don't get properly documented, and then staff leave and the knowledge of the problems is not passed on to new staff. When the problems arise with new staff, they are seeing them for the first time and think they are new issues... when, in fact, they are ancient problems that never get solved. It's a vicious and frustrating chasing-your-own-tail condition.

The managment at the bus yard are nice enough and a few of them do seem to care and do the best they can but head office seems to not care at all. Dispatch are not helpful in the least. When you get shorted a days pay its like pulling teeth to get paid. They say you have to wait for the next pay period which is against the law. They make you fill out a form and they cant even be bothered to give you the form or show you where to find it. You have to ask a few ppl for help finding the form an eventually go find a manager to get it for you. Still havent been paid and its been a week. Then there is the issue with being expected to control special needs kids who are having aggressive outbursts, with no proper training and a wage that doesnt even come close to reflecting the responsibility of the job. You will get hit and pushed and when you report it the only thing they do is say they will ask the teachers what you should do to handle it in the future. We are not trained behavioural interventionists and do not get paid anywhere close to their wage and as such should not be in the position of having to control potentially harmful outbursts. Its not the kids’ fault, they can’t help it. But apparently the school board doesnt value their wellbeing while on the bus and First Canada doesn’t value it’s employees. Don’t waste your time with this company.

My experiences are all through the Coquitlam branch of First Student.

Positives:

My co-workers are excellent.
Most of the equipment is newer and reasonably well maintained.
The location manager is fair, competent, and likeable, even though she's based out of the Maple Ridge location.

Negatives:

Being the largest transportation company makes each employee feel like a number and not a person within the company anymore.
The Vancouver office is also the western Canada head office, making them extremely busy all the time.  This results in employee communications from other locations being missed/ignored constantly.
While the rate of pay isn't all that bad once you reach the maximum rate, it takes a full 5 years to get there, Other than a 4 hr/day guarantee, there aren't a lot of hours.
Charter assignments are assigned the day before, making it difficult to schedule your life around the job.
Company will not pay overtime
Company will train you for each and every occurrence or mishap out there.  That way, if something happens and you're found at fault, the company can then say "we trained them on this day about this kind of danger.  We have nothing to do with it now as we've done our due diligence."

Located in Northern Canada where most of the school year is cold. winter (downwards into the -the 30s) it could be a challenge to get up by 7:00 am and have to go out spect your bus (parked outside), hopê it gets warm in 15 minutes that you are allowed to start it prior to your run. Split shifts ... Early Morning, Afternoon, each about 2 hours. Pay for the "work" was decent, each period (AM and PM) was $75.00 (4 hours work). The downside could face days off (unpaid days) with the weather (i.e. Snow day), PD Day (Teacher Professional Development), Holiday Break 2 weeks, Spring 1 week. Off Summer. Prior to the C19 outbreak, many many charters available, pretty good money in those. I had a GREAT ROUTE, GOOD well behaved kids! Management: FIRST 3.5 years not really good, usually HANDS OFF, replacement EXCELLENT One on One, TOOK immediate interest, was there for each to talk, discuss, gain advice; was VERY FAIR if something needed to be corrected. BAD was the School Boards, their method of following up on those students that required write-ups and corrective action; very very lame! 

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Bus driver 50 salaries reported	$21.96 per hour
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Mechanic 18 salaries reported	$38.18 per hour
Technician 2 salaries reported	$33.00 per hour
Mécanicien 2 salaries reported	$37.00 per hour

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