The Missing School Bus Drivers: A look at employment data before and after the COVID-19 pandemic Archives

MainStreet Macro: Chasing Growth

This week, in the absence of a video, I’d like to set a scene with words. Imagine you’re a hero, tracking a villain dead-set on mayhem. The fate of the economy hangs on your every move. Fraught with more tension than The Dark Knight, central banks around the world have been doing just that, turning their laser sights on interest rates as they try to chase down high inflation. Every decision carries high stakes, with the threat of a slowing economy menacing at every turn. It’s a fact that many economies don’t just fall into recession; they’re driven there by central banks that hike rates too aggressively.

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Wanted: Drivers for yellow buses

by Nela Richardson, Ph.D.

Bus Driver Employment Trends

Bus drivers took a big hit from the COVID-19 shutdown. Schools were shuttered and workers were furloughed. After classrooms reopened, employment levels rebounded, but school bus driver ranks were 14% smaller in September 2021 than they were in September 2019.

Employment dropped most significantly for 25- to 34-year-old drivers. Workers in this age group fell by ...

Summary of The Missing School Bus Drivers

This fall brought school re-openings and a return to in-class learning on a wide scale. It also brought a scramble to get bus drivers back behind the wheel. While most school drivers answered the call and returned to work, we found that about 13% of them are missing in action.

The ADP Research Institute used anonymized ...