Sumter County School District, located east of Columbia, South Carolina, announced a delay this week in its daily routes, after school bus drivers protested their wages and left a shortage of available drivers, reported WLTX19.
Some 20 out of the districts 90 drivers did not report to work Tuesday morning, resulting in some children not arriving at school until after 9 a.m.
The district reportedly had to use coaches, teachers and regular drivers from other areas to cover the 22 percent decrease in route coverage.
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School bus drivers were seen outside of the school district office as they protested in favor of pay increases. However, the district said it is doing what it can to hear the driver’s concerns and set aside time to hear them out. But many drivers reportedly did not attend those meetings.
No further information on the expected route situation was expected for the rest of the week, according to the report.
