Every driver who leaves takes a route with them, and finding, training and licensing the next one takes weeks. The driver walking out the door is also the one person who will tell you, honestly, what made them go: the split shift, a route nobody wants, a bus that kept breaking down, a dispatcher, or pay down the road.
A short school bus driver exit interview turns that into something you can act on. Here are the questions worth asking, how to ask them so you get real answers, and how to see the pattern across everyone who leaves.
Before you start
- Do it in the last week, not the last hour. A driver turning in keys and a fuel card isn't in a talking mood.
- Have someone other than their direct supervisor ask, if you can. People are franker with someone they don't report to.
- Keep it to 15 minutes and say why you're asking: to keep the next driver.
- Write the answers down in their words, and don't argue with them.
Questions about the job
- What made you decide to leave?
- Was there a moment when you started looking?
- Where are you going, and what does that job offer that we don't?
- How did the split shift work for you? The hours between runs?
- Was your route a fair one? Anything about it that should change for the next driver?
- Were the students on your bus a problem? Did you get the help you needed with them?
Questions about the bus and the yard
- Was your bus in good shape? Did defects you reported get fixed?
- Did you have what you needed for the pre-trip: time, a working bus, the right forms?
- Did the yard feel safe in the early morning and late afternoon?
Questions about the office
- Did you know about route changes in time?
- When you asked for time off, did you get an answer quickly and fairly?
- Did your supervisor treat you fairly? Did they notice good work?
- Could you raise a problem without worrying it would be held against you?
- Was the training you got enough when you started? Later on?
- Was your pay right and on time? How did it compare with what you'd expect for the work?
Questions to close with
- What's one thing we should change tomorrow?
- What should we keep doing?
- Would you recommend driving here to a friend? Why or why not?
- Would you come back if something changed? What would it be?
- Is there anything we didn't ask that you want to tell us?
Tip: Look for the same answer twice. One driver unhappy with a dispatcher is a conversation. Four drivers in a year leaving over the split shift is a pay or schedule decision.
Good to know: Keep exit interview notes private, and treat complaints about safety, harassment or pay as reports to follow up, not just feedback. Ask an HR or employment adviser how long to keep them and who may see them.
Doing it in FleetCommander
Leaving. Open the driver in HR › People and, under Leaving, enter the Last day, Why they're leaving (Resigned, Let go, Retired, End of season / contract or Other) and Would you hire them again?, then press Start leaving. The checklist that comes with it already has Exit interview on it, alongside the keys, fuel card, badge and final paycheck, and you can change the list under HR › Leaving. A driver still on routes after their last day is flagged with the routes, so you can hand them to another driver.
The answers. Write them on the driver's page with Add note under Records, and attach a signed form with File if you use one. Records are seen only by people with HR access. If the driver applies again one day, their page on Hiring says when and why they left, and whether you'd hire them again. Finish sets their status and turns off their sign-in. See the HR guide.
Ava (Beta), the assistant in the app, answers Who's leaving? when you have HR access. More on her page.
Related reading
Questions people ask
- What should you ask a school bus driver in an exit interview?
- Why they're leaving and where they're going, how the split shift and their route worked, whether their bus was kept in shape, how the office handled route changes and time off, and what one thing you should change.
- Who should do the exit interview?
- Ideally someone other than the driver's direct supervisor, such as an HR person or the owner, so the driver feels free to be honest.
- Why do school bus drivers quit?
- Common reasons are the split shift and its unpaid hours, pay compared with other driving jobs, difficult routes or students, and how they're treated by dispatch and supervisors. Your own exit interviews will show which matter most at your company.
- Should exit interview notes be kept?
- Yes, privately, where only HR can see them, so you can spot patterns over time. Ask an employment adviser how long to keep them.