ROANOKE, Va. – A shortage of school bus drivers both locally and across the country remains a problem. Durham School Services is hoping to add to their team by holding a community open house on Friday.
The event will take place at 5401 Barns Ave. in Roanoke from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The open house is for anyone ages 21 and older who are interested in becoming a bus driver. Representatives from Durham will be there to answer any questions you might have. They will take you through each step of the training process and how to get your license. They offer paid, on-site training. Durham is a third-party tester for the DMV and are able to conduct training and testing.
In addition, Durham school services is offering a $4,000 sign-on bonus for drivers with or without a commercial driver’s license. They also offer a $2,000 retention bonus for each year that you resign to drive.
“That is the key to our success is not only to hire new drivers, new aids, new employees, but to retain them. When we can retain our employees, it brings a lot to the table for everybody,” said John Ziegler, the director of Business Development for Durham School Services.
If you become a bus driver, you also receive medical, dental, and vision insurance.
Durham is offering $18 an hour to all bus drivers and they are looking to fill about 30 positions.