SINGAPORE: Selected school bus operators will be allowed to hire more foreign drivers to ease the manpower crunch that has forced some companies to terminate their contracts.
This was among the measures announced by the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Monday (Jun 12) to address issues faced by school bus operators.
They can submit their applications to MOE to request a higher foreign worker quota for school bus drivers on a “time-limited basis”.
“We will work closely with operators to phase in more foreign workers based on their needs, taking into consideration the extent of their participation in serving our schools, as well as their demonstrated continued efforts to actively recruit local school bus drivers,” the ministry said in a media release.
The school bus contract template will also be revised to allow operators to submit two sets of bus fares for both the initial contract and option periods. This would allow them to take expected cost increases into account, instead of being contractually bound to the same fares for the whole contract period.
Schools select school bus operators through a competitive bidding process using a contract template provided by MOE.
A typical school bus operator contract lasts four years, with a two-year initial contract period and an option period of another two years.
The revised template will take effect for new contracts awarded to operators for their services from 2024, said MOE.
The ministry noted that the recent shortage of drivers and rising cost pressures have made it more challenging for school bus operators to sustain their operations.
It said it received “persistent feedback” in the past year from operators about losing their school bus drivers and the difficulties in recruiting local drivers.
“To ensure the viability of the school bus sector, the Ministry of Education has engaged bus associations and operators on measures to alleviate their operational constraints,” it added.