Marlborough School Bus Driver Strike Ends

MARLBOROUGH, MA — School bus drivers in Marlborough will return to work Thursday after a contract agreement was reached Wednesday, city officials said.

“Important update - bus driver strike has ended. Full bus service will resume Thursday, May 11th. Thank you to both NRT and Teamsters Local 170 for getting it done!” officials said.

The Teamsters Union Local 170, which represents Framingham, Marlborough and Westborough bus drivers, said that negotiations are continuing in Westborough, though Westborough drivers haven't been pulled from work.

The following is from a previous version this story before the agreement reached Wednesday.

The union and NRT Bus, Inc. reached an agreement over the weekend in Framingham, avoiding a driver strike there in part thanks to city officials stepping in to get the deal to the finish line.

Mayor Arthur Vigeant hasn't done the same for negotiations in Marlborough.

"The City of Marlborough is disappointed in your inability to resolve a labor matter, and your threat to strike despite knowing very well the potential mental and physical impact to the well-being of Marlborough children. You are looking out for your own financial gains while completely dismissing the impact a strike would have on innocent students who have no skin in your fight," Vigeant wrote on May 4.

"The City and the School District have no control over your private labor dispute, but your decisions will have serious consequences for our District and the children we serve. May I remind you, we, the customer, initiated the contract change with NRT on January 1, 2023 and included a 28% INCREASE for your bus drivers from $26.50 to $34.00 hourly rate (one of the highest in the state) specifically so we would not have a shortage of bus drivers."

Yet, union officials and drivers took exception to that point, with the former citing this reaction as part of the cause of the strike.

"The Mayor of Marlborough has pretty much made his position clear which is he does not care to get involved to bring the parties back together," said James Marks, a business agent for Local 170.

Donna Paglia, a bus driver from Marlborough who spoke with the MetroWest Daily News while protesting on Monday, said the raise also came with a cut to hours.

"They are pinching our hours; I was at 30 hours and now I'm at 24, and that brought me down below what I was making before the pandemic," Paglia told the Daily News.

"We care about the kids the most, we want them to be safe. If you get into a school bus and the emergency brake doesn't work, or the seats are falling apart, or the lights don't work, it's not safe for the kids and we want them to make things safe."

As the strike continues, Marlborough school officials have released a plan that relies heavily on students and families to get to school.

It includes students who live within 1.5 miles of their school being "expected to walk."

"A limited number of buses may be available, and those buses will prioritize areas with high concentration of students," district guidance read.

In Framingham, the local School Committee and City Council held an emergency meeting on Saturday to find a way to avoid the strike. Mayor Charlie Sisitsky was able to get both sides back to the negotiating table, which led to the Sunday agreement, city officials said.

Council members voted unanimously to re-bid the bus contract for four years, starting during the 2023-2024 school year. The vote would have been nullified had a strike began on Monday.

The School Committee also voted unanimously to rebid.

Framingham Public Schools is currently in year two of a five-year contract with NRT, who is contracted to provide 77 drivers for 77 bus routes, a number they haven't met the entire school year, officials said.

Read more: Framingham Avoids School Bus Driver Strike After Late Negotiations