Bus Driver Shortage: Signing, Retention Bonuses Announced In Anne Arundel

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — Bus drivers and attendants will get signing and retention bonuses in Anne Arundel. County Executive Steuart Pittman announced the multi-million plan on Thursday.

Pittman hopes the initiative will attract and retain employees during the nationwide commercial driver shortage. This worker deficit has caused widespread transportation issues and left many students without a reliable ride to school.

“We can’t continue leaving kids stranded and parents’ work schedules disrupted,” Pittman said in a press release. “Dedicating $4.2 [million] of our county’s federal recovery funds to these bonuses is the right thing to do for parents and their kids.”

Bus drivers will get a $5,000 signing or retention bonus. Bus aides will collect $2,000.

This strategy differs slightly from the one pitched last month by Anne Arundel County Public Schools. Superintendent George Arlotto suggested giving $2,000 bonuses and raising pay by $5 per hour.

The school board approved this $9.7 million proposal and sent it to the county council as Bill 88-21 for approval. Leaders will withdraw that legislation and implement Pittman's initiative instead. The county executive's effort costs less than half Arlotto's suggestion.

Pittman's strategy is completely funded by Anne Arundel County's money from the American Rescue Plan. AACPS wanted to use American Rescue Plan allocations to cover the bonuses, but it also asked for an extra $7.4 million in each year's school budget to pay for the hourly raises.

The county executive did not include salary increases in his deal. His one-time agreement only applies to this school year, so it will not require an annual budget hike.

“Thank you County Executive Steuart Pittman for working to find local solutions to this national issue,” stated Erin Appel, a representative of the Maryland School Bus Contractor Association. “This is the quickest and most efficient way to help our bus drivers and get our kids to school.”

The Anne Arundel Workforce Development Corporation will now iron out the logistics with bus contractors. The payments will follow soon after in three installments.

This is the signing bonus schedule for new drivers/attendants:

• $2,500/$1,000: After the first week working an AACPS bus route
• $500/$200: After 90 days on the job
• $2,000/$800: On the last pay date of the school year in June 2022

Here is their retention bonus timeline:

• $2,500/$1,000: As soon as contracts are completed with employers
• $500/$200: On the first pay date in March 2022
• $2,000/$800: On the last pay date of the school year in June 2022

"The bonus structure will give the contractors flexibility in the recruitment and retention process,” said Kirkland Murray, president and CEO of the Anne Arundel Workforce Development Corporation. “We know it’s a very competitive environment for bus drivers at a local and national level right now, and these bonuses provide a tool for the contractors to put and keep staff in place.”

The shortage has been a problem all school year, but it drew more attention when multiple Annapolis Bus Company drivers went on strike in early October. That business is one of several bus contractors that work with AACPS, but this particular labor dispute disrupted transportation from Annapolis to Severn.

AACPS posts a daily list of all the affected routes at aacps.org/buses.

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RELATED:

• Bus Driver Pay Raise Gains Support, Seeks County Council Approval
• Board Of Education To Hold Special Meeting To Consider Bus Driver Incentive Package
• AACPS Suggests Paying Bus Drivers Higher Salary To Fix Shortage
• Pittman Urges AACPS To Address Bus Driver Shortage, Plans Forum
• Bus Drivers Go On Strike, Slow School Transportation: Reports

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