News in Brief: A National Roundup

More than 800 striking school bus drivers in Los Angeles ended their nearly monthlong walkout last week, after reaching an agreement with a contractor that provides modest pay raises but still leaves the issue of health-care benefits unresolved.

The strike, believed to be the first job action of its kind for school bus drivers in the Los Angeles Unified School District in 30 years, forced officials in the nation's second-largest district to cancel all field trips and sporting events and find other means to get 18,000 students to their schools. ( "Laidlaw Bus Drivers in Los Angeles Go on Strike," April 10, 2002.)

The bus drivers, who work for Laidlaw Education Services, the district's largest transportation contractor, voted 339-58 on April 28 to end the 26-day walkout and approve a new three-year contract that gives them 3.5 percent annual raises and...