October 27, 2022

New provider of yellow bus service for Seattle School District will be Teamsters

Yellow bus service for students in the Seattle School District will continue to be provided exclusively by Teamster members now that drivers, techs, and mechanics at Zūm have organized with Teamsters Local 174. The workers’ decision to be represented by the Teamsters Union was finalized last week by voluntary recognition after a neutral third party verified a majority of the employees opted for Teamsters representation, and will eventually bring up to 200+ new members into Local 174 once Zūm finishes hiring drivers.

All Seattle school bus service was contracted out to First Student until this academic year, when the Seattle School District decided to split the contract between First Student and Zūm – a California-based company that is new to the area. Teamsters Local 174 immediately got involved in organizing the new group, meeting regularly with new hires and collecting signed Union Authorization cards. Now that the group has been certified, work can begin on negotiating a first contract to protect workers’ rights on the job.

“We are proud to welcome our newest members at Zūm into the Teamster family and look forward to a bright future with this group,” said Teamsters Local 174 Secretary-Treasurer Rick Hicks. “Seattle is a Union town, and school bus driving is a Union industry, so we are pleased that Zūm decided not to fight against their employees and instead let them make their own decision. These drivers chose the Teamsters Union, and together we plan to demonstrate it was the right move.”

Founded in 1909, Teamsters Local 174 represents 8,600 working men and women in Seattle and the surrounding areas. “Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TeamstersLocal174.