ST. LOUIS — St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS) has continued to ask families to transport their students to school as the district struggles to find bus drivers after a walk out by Missouri Central Bus Company employees Monday, according to SLPS.
On the district's website, about 25 bus routes remained not covered Thursday morning.
"We are diligently working to find coverage for the routes, but it could take 30 minutes to an hour," the website states.
Parents can contact the Missouri Central Call Center at 314-449-9162 or the SLPS Transportation call center at 314-633-5107 to schedule an alternate ride for students.
The bus route page will be regularly updated.
The continued lack of transportation has prompted the district to cancel after-school activities earlier this week. After-care programs remain open and sports were handled on a school-by-school basis, according to a statement.
SLPS says it remains “extremely disappointed by the fact that thousands of children and their families are being adversely impacted by a driver walkout against the Missouri Central Bus Company.”
Several drivers called in sick Monday, apparently in protest of the company’s handling of an issue “that has a racial component,” according to the district.
Mechanic Amin Mitchell said he found a noose last week at his workstation. Mitchell told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he believed the noose was meant to send a racist message to intimidate him after an argument with a manager over Mitchell's concern that some bus brakes were inadequate, according to the Associated Press.
Mitchell posted social media video of the noose, fashioned from a thin rope and lying on the floor in the area where he works.
Missouri Central told Spectrum News in a statement that it will hire an independent third party to investigate claims by Mitchell and others of racism.
“At Missouri Central, our policy is to provide and foster a work environment that is welcoming to all regardless of age, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation,” the statement said. “There is zero tolerance for any behavior that violates this policy.”
The state, city and county NAACP chapters called Tuesday for a federal or state investigation.
“The noose is a symbol of hate and sends a clear message of racial terror and the potential for violence,” Missouri NAACP President Nimrod Chapel Jr. said in a text message.
The drivers are members of Laborers' International Union of North America. Because their contract does not permit strikes, drivers told the Post-Dispatch, they called in sick with “personal issues.”
SLPS said it is in constant communication with Missouri Central and has been “adamant that they need to correct the problems they are having within their company quickly.”
It is unclear the full scope of what is happening at Missouri Central or how long this might last.
“The allegations that surfaced Friday from the Missouri Central bus depot are upsetting, and it is our hope that management at Missouri Central will get to the bottom of what is clearly unacceptable behavior,” the district said.
“It is also our hope that leadership at Missouri Central Bus Company and their drivers can find common ground on how to solve their problems. The families of Saint Louis Public Schools should not be the ones left suffering in this situation,” the district said.