Bus drivers walk out of Carmel Clay Schools Board meeting while trustees discuss driver pay increases

CARMEL, Ind. — A group of school bus drivers walked out of a Carmel Clay Schools Board meeting on Monday night.

During the meeting, the board discussed pay increases for its bus drivers and a plan to replace its aging buses.

According to the board's agenda, the district previously approved a 2% pay increase for all of its employees — excluding bus drivers and teachers. At Monday's meeting, the board approved a plan to increase pay for bus drivers by 2%.

"I want to say that I appreciate our bus drivers and everything they do for us," said Dr. Thomas Oestreich, Carmel Clay Schools Superintendent. "We provided a 2% salary increase to our bus drivers, which is the same that we provided for all other employees at this time. Additionally, we are transitioning their benefits and salary schedul