Photo Essay | Valentine's Day of change for OC bus drivers protesting poor working conditions

For Orange County bus drivers, love was not in the air on the morning of Feb. 14. Over 50 bus drivers and union members stood outside of the Orange County Transportation Association (OCTA) Headquarters demanding change to bus drivers’ working conditions. If an agreement between the bus drivers’ union and OCTA was not met, a strike was scheduled to begin at midnight the same day.

The Panther compiled a photo essay documenting these activists’ journey for change.

At the rally, bus drivers from Teamsters Local 952 demand OCTA to begin meeting certain provisions — like guaranteed bathroom and lunch breaks — to help change a work environment currently deemed unfit for safety of the workers. Photos by DANIEL PEARSON, Photo Editor

Attendees of the Feb. 14 rally propose OCTA increase drivers’ salaries, which have remained stagnant throughout the pandemic despite recent increases in the board's salary. 

Activists from the bus drivers’ union lined up on Main Street can be seen holding signs that read, “Union Yes” and “Fighting for a Fair Contract.”

The rally was strategically held in front of the Orange County Transportation Authority headquarters, where a meeting was scheduled to take place later that same day between the Bus Driver’s Union and OCTA officials. The two parties planned to compromise on a new contract providing breaks and salary increases. 

Many activists representing Teamsters Local 952 took turns rallying the crowd with chants of “We demand bathroom breaks” and “Enough stalling!” 

Plans for the bus drivers to go on strike, starting the day after the rally, would have impacted about 75% of the bus routes in Orange County. If an agreement hadn’t been met at the Monday board meeting, over 70,000 daily Orange County riders could have been without a means of transportation on Tuesday morning.

A strike scheduled for the evening of Feb. 14 was called off after an agreement was made between bus drivers and the OCTA to create a new contract for bus drivers’ rights and benefits. Details of the agreement have not been disclosed yet.