SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS ARE ABSOLUTELY DRUG-FREE

The Sun's article "Drug abusers don't necessarily lose job" (Aug. 19) was
interesting, but did not include one piece of information of utmost interest
to readers with children in Maryland's public schools.

Perhaps you will find "people in all kinds of jobs" who have been caught
using drugs or alcohol on the job, but there is one place you absolutely
will not find them: behind the wheel of a public school bus.

Maryland's pupil transportation industry has a long history of aggressive
and proactive action on behalf of our students.

Before federal laws mandated drug testing for school bus drivers, Maryland's
State Department of Education, in concert with transportation directors in
each county, advocated drug testing.

We worked cooperatively to have bylaws approved that ensure that any public
school bus driver who tests positive for alcohol or illegal drugs, forever
loses the right to drive a school bus in this state.

To comply with the spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act, many
school systems provide support for any of our employees with documented
disabilities who are in recovery.

In Baltimore County we provide a comprehensive Employee Assistance Program;
however, employees are removed from "safety-sensitive" functions while
participating in such programs. And drivers know that once a drug test is
administered and a positive result is confirmed, the opportunity to seek
assistance is gone.

It is neither coincidental nor accidental that school buses are considered
the safest form of transportation.

This proactive approach to driver and vehicle safety is a reflection of our
continuing belief that we carry the most precious cargo in the world.

Rita Fromm, Baltimore