Clayton County Schools Superintendent Morcease Beasley met with school bus drivers Thursday to hash out discrepancies over pay, two months after workers gathered at the district's bus barns to protest missing compensation.
Beasley addressed initiatives the district is taking to improve on-time employee compensation, discussed worker shortages and detailed efforts the county is undertaking to encourage better attendance among drivers, according to a statement the school system released Thursday.
"We are reviewing internal processes and working with those drivers and their supervisors to ensure they are compensated accurately and in a timely manner," Beasley said in the release. "We are of the belief that if you work, you should be paid whatever you earn and we are committed to making sure that happens."
The meeting came two months after drivers gathered at least two times in September to complain that they were not fully paid for hours worked, according to media reports. The drivers said their paychecks were short several times over the summer.
Beasley told drivers that the district has rolled out new software to improve its worker compensation.
The district “successfully migrated to a new human resources and financial management solution with issues addressed when reported,” he said. “It’s been a transition for all, but the major pain is now past us.”
In an effort to reduce absenteeism, the district also said it has launched incentives for bus drivers who have perfect attendance in November and December, though it did not disclose what those incentives are. That program could extend into the new year if it reduces absenteeism, the district said.
“We certainly value our drivers as they are oftentimes the first and last Clayton County Public Schools representative our students encounter on a daily basis,” Beasley said.
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