Blue Bird bus maker closes its Macon warehouse, moves workers to Perry for ‘efficiency’

Blue Bird, a Middle Georgia-based school bus manufacturer, is moving its warehouse operations from Macon to Perry.

The Macon warehouse’s 44 employees will not be laid off, but will be moved either to the new facility in Perry or to Fort Valley, where the company’s manufacturing operations are sited.

Julianne Barclay, a spokesperson for Blue Bird, told the Telegraph in an email that the closure of the Macon warehouse is due to its lease expiring at the end of this year.

Barclay said this would help the company “increase efficiency” by moving its warehouse operations closer to Fort Valley.

She said some of the warehouse workers have already been moved to the company’s Fort Valley facilities.

Blue Bird, which was founded in Fort Valley in 1927, made national headlines in May when its 1,400 workers voted to unionize, affiliating with the United Steelworkers.

The new union’s worker-elected bargaining committee has been in contract negotiations with Blue Bird management since August.

According to updates posted on the USW website, during negotiations, the union has pushed for a fair job bidding procedure to allow workers to advance within the company.

The union has also set up an appeals process for disciplinary actions against Blue Bird employees. This has resulted in workers being rehired or having warnings stricken from their records.

The union has also claimed credit for the company opening a medical office in its South plant in Fort Valley.

Despite these achievements, the negotiations have recently taken a turn for the worse, according to a text message the union sent its members.

“Our bargaining sessions last week were less productive than previous ones. Blue Bird needs to take our issues seriously when we meet again Oct 17-18,” the union said in the message on Oct. 6, without specifying the source of the dispute.

This story was originally published October 17, 2023 at 12:08 PM.