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Phil4747
Top Member
USA
695 Posts |
 Posted - 05/05/2001 : 10:25:10 PM
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I was on a trip last night with my college's chorus, for which we chartered a school bus from a local contractor. The company was Dufour Tours, in West MA--a small company with only 5 or 6 contracts.
I was talking with the driver, and he said that he gets treated very well by Dufour. On charter trips like ours, he gets paid for the entire time, including when he's sitting in the building watching us sing! He also gets paid for 15 minutes before and after each run, and any time between runs when he's away from the lot (like on a charter).
Dufour gives bonuses for no preventable accidents, and perfect attendance. They always have new equipment--their oldest buses are '96 I believe, which is longer than they usually keep them.
They also show a lot of respect for their drivers on a personal level. One example, when this driver's mother passed away while he was training, they told him to take as much time off as he needed, and his boss even came to the wake to pay his respects.
Dufour has many drivers who switch to work for them from other companies, but has never had a driver leave to go to another school bus company.
My question is--is this typical of smaller companies? Most of the drivers I've had have been employed by either Ryder or Laidlaw, and have had a lot of complaints, about the things that this driver liked about Dufour. Is it better to work for a smaller company than a large one?
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B. Busguy33
Top Member
USA
3444 Posts |
Posted - 05/06/2001 : 7:46:45 PM
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I don't know...it sounds pretty tempting for me to check this company out and possibly relocate. What kind of equipment do they have?
Bob
"B. Busguy33" |
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Phil4747
Top Member
USA
695 Posts |
Posted - 05/06/2001 : 9:48:17 PM
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Hehehe, Bob, how did I know you'd be interested?
Dufour's main office is in Hinsdale, which is out in the Berkshires, right near Pittsfield. I'm all the way down in South Berkshire County, and our nearest lot is Lenox (the town famous for the Tanglewood Music Festival). The bus and driver I mentioned were form there.
The bus was a 2000 AmTran Conventional. I had also asked for a bus from them for a video project I was doing back in September, and the bus I got was the same year and model, but it said International above the door (it was still a 3800--some of them say AmTran, some say International).
My school uses them for most of our trips, and I've been on 97-98 Thomas and Blue Bird International conventionals from other lots, and also some AmTran REs. I think they also have a couple Genesis, but they're almost ready to be retired. None of their buses are more than 4-5 years old.
I definitely encourage you to check them out...the Berkshires are a very nice place to live. Very hilly though, so even on an automatic you're gonna be shifting a lot.
We also have a good transit bus system that I'm sure you could drive for over the summer, the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority out of Pittsfield. Their fleet consists of 92 Flxible Metros, 98 Eldorado Cutaways, and 00 Nova RTS. From what I've heard, they treat their drivers well too.
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B. Busguy33
Top Member
USA
3444 Posts |
Posted - 05/07/2001 : 08:49:15 AM
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Hey Phil,
I am interested in getting some more info about Dufour transportation. They sound like a great company with equipment that I am sure I wouldn't mind driving...lol. Do you know if they have a website that I could visit by any chance? Thanks for the help.
Bob
"B. Busguy33" |
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svhockeyjock
Senior Member
USA
68 Posts |
Posted - 05/17/2001 : 11:21:36 PM
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When i lived in Pittsburgh the company i worked for was one of the largest local contractors in western PA. A.J.Myers & Sons. They treated me really well, i got paid well also. Their equpment policy was 5 years or 100000 miles then its a spare for 3 years longer. So none of their busses were old. They had some older spares but they were rarely used. Their fleet was ENTIRELY Blue Bird accept some of the older spares from when they took over the Seneca Valley garage (1995 Wayne-Ford, some older Wayne Internationals, and mostly Thomas Internationals) I had a 1996 GMC-Bluebird, then this year i got a 2000 INternational-Bluebird. They operate about 500 School busses and 70 or so big Motor Coaches (Under the Myers Coach Lines name)..They do the Seneca Valley School Dist (biggest garage 190 or so busses) Woodland Hills School Dist(30 busses), Mars Area School Dist(70 or so busses), Franklin Regional School Dist (150 or so busses), and one other district i cant remember. But they are BIG and they treat their drivers well. There are a few other BIG local contractors and they all from what i have heard are pretty nice to work for. Monarch Student Transportation, Action Transit, W. L. Ronigk Company, Owens Motor Coach, and Smith Bus are the other BIG locals, some of them also run coaches (Owens and Action Transit i believe). But from what i have heard the REALLY BIG ones like Laidlaw and First Student are the worst to work for.
John Scott Boreland |
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Bus Boy 39
Top Member
USA
1315 Posts |
Posted - 05/18/2001 : 03:36:01 AM
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The contractor for my school is Monarch Student Transportation. This is there first year for them to contract my school. They are a good bus company, all Blue Bird buses and all of the buses are 1993 and up. Most of the transits are around 2000. Good bus company.
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svhockeyjock
Senior Member
USA
68 Posts |
Posted - 05/18/2001 : 10:52:19 PM
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You must go to West Allegheny then, that or Cannon McMallin cuz those are the two districts they took over this past school year.
John Scott Boreland |
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WayneLifguard44
Senior Member
USA
92 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2001 : 12:08:55 PM
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I think big companies like LaidLaw and others are not good for the drivers. I want to own a company that takes my whole district. But when I do I will come in and make it good. I will work with all the drivers. I think smaller not BIG HUGE companies are good. But small ones that work good with the drivers are good~!!! If the person got the heart for it not just in it for $$$$!!
Wayne Lifeguard44 -Tyler |
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svhockeyjock
Senior Member
USA
68 Posts |
Posted - 05/23/2001 : 05:49:05 AM
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Mark Schmidt who owns Monarch Student Transp. owns BlueBird Bus Sales of Pittsburgh...just another tidbit of info
John Scott Boreland |
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DufourDriver
Active Member
USA
20 Posts |
Posted - 05/24/2001 : 09:08:05 AM
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Hi all,
I'm Julianne and I work for Dufour. I've been employed with them since 1996. They are a great company compared to others in Western Massachusetts. I now live in Westfield Mass, but I came from Huntington Mass and continue to drive out of Dufour's Huntington garage. Right now Dufour has garages in Lenox, Huntington, and Hinsdale. I believe they just got a new contract in North Adams, (that contract was just won so I'm not sure if it is in operation now or in September). Dufour also has a garage and contracts in Bennington VT.
Phil mentioned a few of the perks in his post. One of them being the bonus for staying accident free. Our bonus system is tied in with our attendance. Every month during the school year if we have no accidents and attend our monthly safety meeting we recieve a 3 hr bonus in our checks. at the end of the year if we have had perfect attendance we get an additional 5 hour bonus and if we've had no accidents and attended at least 8 out of 10 safety meetings we get an addtional 5 hours of pay. The company pays according to the bus you drive. big bus is one rate, mini bus another rate, and 7-D another rate. All runs are figured at a minimum of 2 hours time morning and afternoon and of course we get paid anything above the 2 hours. There are two health insurance options with this company something most companies around here can't brag about. One of them is an HMO which is rather expensive but if you have no other options it's better than nothing and the other is a kind of partner insurance that ranges from free to I think around 50.00 or so. That one will at least help pay for our yearly physical, something most insurance companies won't even cover anymore.
Phil also mentioned the rural area we drive in. This to me is simply another perk. I've driven in the Cities with a school bus and I feel much more comfortable in the rural areas, little traffic, hardly any lights or stop signs, and the scenic areas are awesome. Yeah it's a little tricky in the winter time and the dirt roads can be a hassle, but the foliage, rivers, and wildlife you'll encounter in this neck of the woods more than makes up for any minor hardships.
All in all folks, Dufour is a great company to work for and trust me i've looked around. If any of you live in the Western MA area and are looking to change companies be sure to put Dufour at the top of your list.
Have a great day,
Julianne 
p.s. large company Vs. Small? I think it's more about the owner of the company rather than the size. An owner who cares about his people and his equipment means more than how many employees he has.
Communication is the key to all success!!!! |
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Stock2935
Active Member
USA
44 Posts |
Posted - 10/18/2001 : 7:35:47 PM
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I must put in a good note for Stock Transportation Ltd. theyve been contracting for my district for the past two years, and what ive seen and heard they treat everyone very respectively. Stock is a medium size company with only 5 contracts in the US and a dozen or so in Canada. They have a very well maintained fleet and treat every situation with care and safety. Way to go Stock! keep up the good work
GM |
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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
Posted - 10/19/2001 : 11:09:05 AM
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quote:
" ... p.s. large company Vs. Small? I think it's more about the owner of the company rather than the size. An owner who cares about his people and his equipment means more than how many employees he has."
I completely agree with the above quote. Management providing effective training, treating their employees well and maintaining safe equipment is far more important than a body count.
Laidlaw, our nation's largest contractor, has some outstanding operations, as well as some of the worst. Management often simply can not help but duplicate themselves and their own attitudes in their employees. Such can be a blessing or a cancer making its' way through the fleet.
A bank manager friend of mine, and before the electronic screening for phoney bills,
would have his teller trainees count many thousands in genuine twenties. At some point he would slip a phoney twenty into a stack. When the trainee could I.D. that phoney bill, by feel alone, he then felt the trainee was ready to go to work.
Having a feel, understanding the best, the genuine, helps I.D. a fraud, and can be accomplished without having to learn all the different anomalies involved in a phoney run fleet.
Schoolbusfleet has set a mild post, in their effort to honor well run bus fleets. I plan to read, reread and read again "Great fleets across America," until I have an adequate understanding about every one of the presented fleets.
If these fleets are genuine, we eventually can not be lead astray by the phoney ones. We will know the phoney, not so much by having to understand their behavior, but by having an adequate understanding of the genuine. (jk)
School Bus Drivers: What do you believe is your employer's top priority? Click on this link: http://forums.delphi.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=2safeschools&msg=1298.1
Edited by - jk on 10/19/2001 11:24:59 AM |
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Stock2935
Active Member
USA
44 Posts |
Posted - 10/24/2001 : 5:53:41 PM
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Has anyone ever heard of Stock Transportation? Im curious what your input on this contractor. They serve my district very well.
GM
GM |
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BusBoy
Top Member
USA
2042 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2001 : 3:54:30 PM
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First Student got the contract in Indianapolis from Laidlaw, and the driver never had benefits before!
First Student also rewards drivers for no preventable accidents, and perfect attendance. They also give them 5 payed hoildays.
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SchoolBusCharter
Senior Member
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - 11/20/2001 : 1:25:08 PM
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Many times it comes down to management and money. Some small companies can treat drivers better, when they have a good boss or money in the can. My experience with large corporations is not good. They treat you like a number, but as I said, it depends on management. The company I work for now is small here in Virginia. I love it over my old days back in Ohio and Pennsylvania with mega companies.(I'll not mention names.) My boss here is young, has experience and treats us like gold. We only start off at 10.00 a hour but top pay and bonuses are good. He offers us overtime, driver training and free meals on occasion. My boss knows what it is like to be a driver, as he will jump in a bus and mingle with us and our riders/cutomers and nobody knows he owns the business. He is stern, respectful and treats us well. I am proud I live in Virginia and work for the newest kid on the block.
Ryan Mathews |
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ontariobus
New Member
2 Posts |
Posted - 11/21/2001 : 1:31:17 PM
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Yes I've heard of Stock Transportation. They treat their drivers like crap and pay terrible wages. The management of this company are the most greedy people I've ever met. They have had more lawsuits against them here in Ontario than you can imagine. They should be ashamed of themselves for not only underpaying their employees, but for treating them like they do!!!
Has anyone ever heard of Stock Transportation? Im curious what your input on this contractor. They serve my district very well.
GM
GM
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busguyuk
Active Member
United Kingdom
31 Posts |
Posted - 11/23/2001 : 11:25:06 AM
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I totally agree with the comments made about the effect on drivers of good, and more to the point bad management in the large v small bus operation debate.
A good manager that genuinely values the staff and treats them the way he/she would like to be treated will always have low turnover of staff and a waiting list to join.
There are too many managers who in the past have worked in the drivers seat or with wrenches but have now forgotten what makes people tick at the sharp end of the business. If people are treated with respect, feel valued and feel involved in the improvement of the business then they will take ownership of any problem and the whole job will run like clockwork.
The company I work for is expanding rapidly and is always on the look-out for real management talent at location level. Prospective managers obviously need to be able to manage finances but if they are streetwise and really relate to people they will know how best to run a fun place with involved staff. These 'stars' will stand out above the rest.
Edited by - busguyuk on 11/27/2001 04:29:14 AM |
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Finer
New Member
USA
2 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2002 : 1:04:41 PM
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My father drove for First Student and our experience with them has been nothing but frustrating. Three months ago after dropping off a student my dad's bus started on fire! During this time my father suffered a stroke. We have consulted numerous doctors on the subject and have been told that the type of stroke he suffered is often brought on by stress/adrenaline. As I said this was three months ago and First Student along with their workman's comp. insurance carrier has not paid a bill, contacted a doctor or one of the three hospitals my father has been in. The have called twice to my parents house to tell my mother they are sure it was all his fault (we haven't figured out yet how having a stroke can cause a fire - an accident (like running into something) I can understand - but a stroke?) They have NEVER called back when they say they will and as I said haven't contacted any of the specialists that have worked with Dad. He is now in a nursing home in therapy where my Mom's insurance is paying the bill on a 60/40 split with my family. There has been no definative conclusion as to how the fire started - they are just quick to say it was my Dad's fault. (He can't talk at this time so we can't get any answers from him). In my world a company that professes such care and concern for it's drivers and the children on the busses would at the least try to work with my parents to some degree until some kind of resolution is reached. As I stated before we haven't figured out how a stroke can start a fire and First Student doesn't seem to care how it happened either. I only hope that the same malfunction doesn't happen on a full bus (there where luckily only 6 students on so they were able to exit the back). The entire bus was in flames in 5-7 minutes. I feel if this were a smaller company they may actually care about the people who work for them (my dad has driven bus for 18 years). First Student gets no praise from our family or anyone else that knows the whole situation - BEWARE of them!!!
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Large companies vs. Small
