By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE government has terminated contracts for dozens of Family Island school bus drivers but intends to rehire the contractors and give them better terms of employment, Minister of Education Jeffrey Lloyd said yesterday.

Progressive Liberal Party Leader Philip “Brave” Davis had raised concerns about the termination exercise after viewing a letter that was given to one of the drivers. 

The letter cited a contract clause that empowered either the government or the contractor to terminate the agreement with 60 days notice.

The letter, written to Kevin Ferguson of Good Hands Private Charter, said: “The Ministry of Education contracted with you on June, 2015, to provide busing services for Route 15 (from Pinder’s Point, Hunters, Mack Town, Bahamia, Wellington Estate, East Sunset Subdivision/return) ... The ministry hereby gives you notice that as of December 12, 2018, your services will no longer be needed for Route 15.”

Mr Davis frowned at the appearance the government was firing people during the Christmas season, but Mr Lloyd yesterday said the education system would come to a halt without the bus drivers.

“Upon coming to office, we were met with a great number of complaints from bus drivers about what they considered to be difficult circumstances under which they were engaged,” Mr Lloyd said. “They were unable to satisfactorily meet a profitable environment. We intend to adjust their contracts and renegotiate with them. What we decided to do is to bring all contracts to a conclusion and rework them.”

The contractors affected are in Grand Bahama, Eleuthera, Abaco and MICAL. Mr Lloyd said contractors in other islands will be dealt with if complaints arise. 

Some in the Progressive Liberal Party were concerned the government was terminating the contracts in order to give new ones to Free National Movement supporters. 

But Mr Lloyd said: “For the most part, the same contractors who have the contract, have reapplied to have it extended or renewed and they will likely get it again. There are few persons in those islands with the capacity to provide these services so mostly it will be the same fellas but with a cost point that is more reflective of the 21st century year in which we live.”

Mr Davis said he doesn’t buy Mr Lloyd’s explanation, saying contracts need not be terminated to be renegotiated. He also pointed to the language of the letter, which said “your services will no longer be needed”.

However, Mr Lloyd said the Tenders Board has already approved resubmitted bids, leaving it to Cabinet to sign off on them. “There has been and will be no interruption in services,” he said. 

Under the previous arrangement, bus drivers made between $380 to $550 per day for 180 days of the year, Mr Lloyd said. 

“In some instances that was inadequate,” he added. “In other instances that was way over what was necessary. We had to bring some semblance to it all. When you consider the cost of fuel in Family Islands, the wear and tear on their buses, the insurance costs and the cost of paying a bus driver or two, they said it’s difficult to make a decent profit and we agreed.”

Improving terms of contractors’ employment is not new for his ministry under the Minnis administration, Mr Lloyd said. He said the ministry has improved the terms of employment for school lunch vendors and caterers and is in the process of improving the financial terms for security service companies.

“With the lunch vendors, we had to adjust their provision of services because they were not receiving the margin they needed to provide quality lunch for our students,” he said. “We had to come to Cabinet and say this $3.85 we agreed to pay vendors for lunch is simply not going to cut it and we increased it to $4.85 (per lunch plate). Caterers are hired by social services to deliver lunch, but they come under the same rubric of cost. They have to provide a fruit, a vegetable, carbohydrates, protein and a drink. Guess what a vendor is going to do if she cannot provide all that? She’s going to cut corners, depriving the student.”

The government outsources security services to security companies, paying them $80,000 to $90,000 per year for guarding public schools during two shifts, the 4pm to 12am shift and the 12am to 8am shift. That amount of money the companies receive “is not enough to deliver quality security services,” Mr Lloyd said.

“We must treat our business people with respect,” he added. “Small business people are the ones who drive every economy. If you are making life difficult for them, you make life difficult for everybody.”