When the boss has to drive the bus himself

Between February and April, Sabtours Managing Director Wolfgang Stöttinger’s working day often began earlier and went differently than usual. Instead of going to his management office in Wels, Stöttinger got behind the wheel of a bus and helped out as a driver.

The bus company with around 300 drivers is struggling with a thin staffing level. Due to sick leave, dispatchers and dispatchers have to step in as drivers again and again to prevent failures of individual lines. “At that time we were in a dramatic situation, and I played 16 times as an iron reserve,” says Stöttinger. In the meantime, the situation at Sabtours has “slightly eased”, but the company is still looking for around 25 bus drivers for the regular service. “Then things would look comfortable for us again,” reports Stöttinger. Currently, employees sometimes have to drive six days a week and work overtime in order to be able to guarantee nationwide operation.

800,000 new kilometers driven

“The labor shortage is noticeable in every industry – the bus driver is no exception,” says Stöttinger. According to the Upper Austrian Transport Association (OÖVV), of which Sabtours has been a member since 2013, around 120 drivers were wanted in Upper Austria as of March 24, 2023. Around 1,200 drivers are currently deployed in regional transport.

A number that will hardly decrease with the increasing expansion of line networks in Upper Austria. According to the OÖVV, with the timetable change in December 2022 alone, around 800,000 kilometers were added to regional bus services. The introduction of the climate ticket has also led to record occupancy rates along many lines in recent months.

According to Stöttinger, there are many reasons for the lack of handlebars. Due to the legal minimum age of 21, few young people would decide to become bus drivers. “You can drive a truck when you’re 18, so we don’t care,” says Stöttinger. There are also a few driving schools in Upper Austria that offer the D driver’s license. Most recently, Sabtours found 20 new employees by paying them the cost of a bus driver’s license.

New employees are currently moving to the company from a wide variety of industries. Also, more and more people would drive a bus part-time. At Sabtours, this group would now make up about 15 percent. “These are mainly teachers or people who work full-time in the catering industry,” says Stöttinger.

Shortage job bus driver?

The fact that the profession still does not appear on the federal list of shortage jobs also prevents applicants from non-EU countries from being able to fall back on them. “Bus drivers for guest workers from Bosnia-Herzegovina have contacted us. They are top workers with a lot of professional experience who would like to start with us.” Discussions are currently underway with the responsible authorities. “We are confident that the bus driver will soon be recognized as a shortage occupation,” says Stöttinger.

Another problem for transport companies when looking for employees is the lack of awareness among the population. “Our profession is simply not represented enough in the media,” says Stöttinger.

A new campaign by the OÖVV, the state of Upper Austria and the Upper Austrian transport companies aims to counteract this. State Councilor Günther Steinkellner (FPÖ) and OÖVV Managing Director Herbert Kubasta presented the details in Linz yesterday under the title “It doesn’t work without you”.

handlebar in focus

According to Steinkellner, the further expansion of regional public transport is a “clear wish of the citizens”. However, this requires more staff. According to Steinkellner, the focus of the campaign would be on the bus drivers themselves, who would report on their day-to-day work.

As the client, the OÖVV wants to support companies in their search for employees. In workshops, together with those responsible, the difficulties in finding personnel were dealt with. According to Kubasta, the campaign would be aimed at “everyone who is considering reorienting themselves professionally”.