A group of 72 bus drivers at First Student Corvallis is sticking to the union. First Student runs both school bus and city bus service in Corvallis, and its drivers are represented by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 757. Some drivers wanted to go non-union, but in a June 6 election, the vote was 41 to 21 in favor of remaining union-represented.
“We were disappointed that there was a petition for decertification,” said Local 757 financial secretary-treasurer Mary Longoria, “but we are proud of the people that stepped up and understand the importance of having a union.”
Local 757 was in the middle of negotiating a new contract for the unit, but those talks paused in the lead-up to the vote. Longoria said she expects negotiations to resume now that it’s settled that workers want to remain union.
