JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The clock is ticking down for Durham School Services and the Teamsters Union to reach a new contract deal, as Duval County Public Schools is scheduled to start school on Monday.
Earlier this week, Teamsters Local 512 authorized a strike for its 275 local bus drivers after weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with the bus company.
Durham School Services is one of the two bus services DCPS uses.
DCPS says if the strike goes into effect this could impact school bus riders in the Mandarin and Southside areas. Those are the areas that Durham drivers service.
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“Parents, how are we going to get our kids to school?,” said Veronica Jones, DCPS parent.
Jones lives in the Southside area and has a daughter enrolled in a magnet school.
Her daughter, Kennedy, does not take the bus.
However, she said when she heard the news about the potential bus strikes, her heart dropped.
“I have no idea what I would do. I mean potentially I would lose my job behind something like that,” said Jones.
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“If I couldn’t go on the bus and I was supposed to go on the bus then it would be harder on our parents,” said Kennedy who is about to start fourth grade.
Jones hopes a deal can be reached soon.
“This is not a good way for the first day of school to start,” said Jones.
Action News Jax reached out to both the Teamsters and Durham School Services for interviews today. They both declined.
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The station also reached out to DCPS and asked if they are preparing an alternative plan for transportation if the strike happens. They did not answer our question.
The Union did not say when the strike would take place if a deal is not reached.
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