Cold fronts and contract stalls: School bus drivers strike looms on

As thousands of families in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District (MSBSD) are enjoying spring break, negotiations remain at a standstill as school bus drivers working for Durham School Services (DSS) enter another week of a strike, refusing to back down despite plummeting temperatures and the onset of spring break. Teamsters Local 959 announced that while negotiations remain at a standstill, no immediate solution is in sight for the over 18,000 students affected by the stoppage, forcing the district to grapple with the dual crisis of halted transportation and extreme winter weather.

Further adding to the misery was the news that DSS had canceled the health insurance for all workers. In a press release from Teamsters Local 959, DSS employees discovered that their healthcare plan had been terminated, with no advanced notification. “Durham employees discovered their plan had been cancelled when visiting the emergency room and at medical appointments.”

According to the statement, when DSS offered their final contract offer, there was no mention of changes to the health insurance offers from the previous contract.

“It appears that Durham has cancelled insurance and benefit plans strictly to hurt their employees and render them without healthcare.” Despite cancelling the policies, Durham continues to deduct health and benefits premiums from employee paychecks.

According to Patrick FitzGerald, a coordinator with the Teamsters, DSS has yet to answer any questions about why they made this move. “Health insurance has been prepaid by everybody out here,” he said from the picket line with dozens of striking bus drivers on Tuesday morning as temperatures were -10 degrees.

Unfortunately, employers are legally allowed to stop paying for health insurance while workers are on strike. While Alaska law (AS 21.36.225) dictates a 45-day notice period before insurance is cancelled, this does not stop companies from cutting off premium payments once a contract expires. Federal law generally permits this suspension of benefits during a strike

Even if coverage is canceled, COBRA (short for the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985), typically requires that striking workers be given the option to continue their health coverage by paying the full premium themselves.

As the strike enters its second week, the community has rallied behind the bus drivers, bringing them snacks, hand warmers, and words of encouragement. “We have a lot of positivity, a lot of thumbs up, fist bumps, even people just driving by giving us a honk. It means a lot, keeps us motivated.”

As far as coming back to the negotiating table scheduled March 17-18 dates, FitzGerald noted that while DSS has confirmed their intent, he is seeking a longer commitment than their current two-day agreement. He has contacted MSBSD Superintendent Dr. Randy Trani to help advocate for an extended negotiation period.

“If there’s anything we can do to hammer something out, that’d be great,” he said, but struck a more somber tone adding “Right now, the only thing we’re looking forward to is above zero temperatures.” We reached out to DSS for comment but as of this publication but have not received a response.