Bus drivers are on the verge of a strike that would impact thousands of students across the three MetroWest school districts on Monday.
The strike could affect Framingham, Westborough and Marlborough because they all use the same bus company.
The possibility for the strike is related to contract negotiations between the bus drivers’ union — Teamsters Local 170 — and their employers, a private company called North Reading Transportation Bus Inc.
Both sides have met several times and still could not come to an agreement after a nine-hour meeting with the Framingham Mayor on Saturday.
The School Committee and City Council voted unanimously to re-bid the bus contract for four years starting this fall if the strike happens on Monday.
The union saying in a statement that they’ve countered five proposals from the bus company, adding that they refuse to negotiate Marlborough and Westborough contracts. They also said the bus company’s senior vice president and director of employee relations were not at the meeting with the mayor.
Meanwhile, the company said in a statement that “the Union also rejected NRT’s proposal to hold off on the strike at all school districts if the parties were able to reach an agreement for the Framingham drivers, so that more time could be spent in negotiations.”
It’s not clear at this point if both sides will meet before Monday.
