Bus drivers are still driving: What Newsom’s order means for California school employees

Linda Figone, a bus driver trainer in Gilroy, was supposed to be off for the month of July. Instead, she spent the first two weeks driving school bus routes three days a week.

The job? Delivering meals to students who’ve relied on school food programs since COVID-19 forced campuses to close four months ago. When bus drivers no longer had to take students to campus, Figone said, they started distributing food at their normal stops and setting up WiFi hotspots in school parking lots.

Figone took with her a box of children’s books from her personal collection.

“I like to drive and I like the students,” Figone said. “They looked forward to getting their lunch and coming and selecting some books that they could take home to read.”

New assignments for school employees like Figone are taking place all over California as schools prepare to reopen this fall with remote learning until the coronavirus outbreak subsides. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday released strict criteria for in-person classroom instruction, meaning kids won’t be on campus anytime soon in much of the state.

Still, buildings still require upkeep and districts have an obligation to provide services to students and families.

“State leaders know that schools can’t operate safely or effectively without full classified staff help, whether in person or distance learning,” said Aaron Latham, spokesman for the union that represents California classified school employees, the California School Employees Association. “Our members are still serving food to their communities, and delivering that food via buses, and keeping schools clean and maintained and ready for when it is safe to return.”

Full-time classified employee were protected from layoffs in the budget Newsom signed last month, ensuring most will keep their jobs.

Still, many are worried about their safety and job security as the pandemic drags on.

Some of classified employee union chapters are bargaining over standards for personal protective equipment. Workers are also asking districts to expand paid leave caps in case they’re exposed to COVID-19 on the job.

“If I have to keep quarantine because somebody on my bus had a fever … now I’m off for two weeks,” said Figone, who heads her local union. She has accrued substantial sick leave over her 14 years employed with the district but worries that mandated self-isolation could quickly eat that time up.

“If that comes out of my sick pay, and now I come back to work for another week and now somebody else (exposes me to COVID-19) that could be 28 days right off the bat,” Figone said.

Others worry that their jobs may soon become obsolete.

Coral Dunn Morley, a paraeducator in Milpitas, said her line of work relies on in-person interaction with her students, many of whom have personal circumstances that make distance learning particularly difficult.

“How relevant is my job if we’re gonna be doing shelter in place?” Morley asked, adding that she took advantage of a free associate’s degree program through the union to build her resume and job skills. “But looking forward, I see how paraeducators can do so much more because there’s technology.”

She has attended online webinars learn how to better support students and utilize various online platforms. After schools closed earlier this year, Morley worked with the teacher in her classroom to devise unique education plans for individual students.

“Giving students one on one attention virtually is going to be a challenge,” Latham said. “Our paraeducators are perfect for that role … Our members are willing to do what’s necessary to make (distance learning) work best for students.”