Hiring school bus drivers

Etienne’s pen abruptly stopped scratching across his notepad. He took a long sip of cold, too-
bitter coffee. “Umm,” he said to his interviewee, “I’m not sure I heard that correctly, could you
repeat what you said?” “Sure,” replied Duane, the large middle-aged man sitting across from
him, “For fun on weekends I like to dress up in women’s clothes and go to the bars as my alter
ego, Diane.” For the first time in years, Etienne found himself speechless.

“Well, you are very honest,” he finally managed to squeak out. “I figure I may as well be,”
commented Duane. “After all, this is a small town, and it’s only a matter of time until you find
out anyway. If something like that would impact my employment here, I would rather it come
up now.” Etienne took another gulp of coffee and moved on to the next question. He had
worked for a school bussing company as an HR specialist for nine years. One of his primary
responsibilities was hiring and training school bus drivers. Key qualifications included a clean
driving record, clean criminal record, responsible and safe driving habits, and an ability to
calm, manage, and tolerate children from frightened kindergarteners on their first day of school
to unruly teenagers going through rebellious fazes. Bus drivers also had to be sensitive to public
perceptions. They were cautioned, for example, not to hug or otherwise touch any of the
children, even if the child was very young and upset, to avoid the appearance of impropriety.
One driver had been fired because over lunch he had parked the school bus at a local bar.
Although he had drunk only one beer at 12:00 and he was not due to drive until 2:45, the
reputational damage of having a school bus seen at that location was sufficient to result in his
dismissal.

The company had a group of dedicated bus drivers who had been with the company for a long
time, but turnover was still relatively high. Many parents with young children chose to drive a
school bus for a few years to spend time with their children before returning to full-time
employment. In addition, new immigrants with advanced degrees often worked there while
waiting for their foreign credentials to go through the recognition process. These types of
employees seldom lasted more than two years, so hiring was an ongoing task.

Duane had responded to the ad for new drivers and in all respects had seemed a strong
candidate. He had driven city busses in Guelph, Ontario for 16 years before moving north to
be primary caregiver to his aging parents. He had a clean and reliable driving record and had
been highly recommended by his former employer. He had lots of experience with children:
from the time he was 5 to when he was 14, he had coached his nephew’s soccer team; it was
his way of helping support his sister, a single parent, since she had wanted a positive male role
model in her son’s life.

There was no reason not to hire Duane. Throughout the rest of the interview he had performed
well. That said, the cross-dressing thing made Etienne feel weird. He had grown up in a small,
conservative rural community and had never before met anyone who would admit to cross-
dressing. He couldn’t help but feel it might be a problem. Would parents worry about their kids
having contact with such a person? He couldn’t explain why, but he felt “wriggly in his guts”
about it. He began to wonder if he was just being silly. He decided to talk about it with someone
else. Since he was the only HR employee there, Etienne went to Heather, the vice-president for
their area, to get a second opinion.

He described the situation to her the next day in her office. “What are your specific concerns?”
asked Heather. “Well, I am worried about how parents will react if they learn one of our school
bus drivers is a cross-dresser.” “How would that be relevant?” “People might worry about their
kids,” replied Etienne. “I don’t see why. He is a cross-dresser, not a paedophile. The two have
nothing to do with each other. Sure, some parents might be upset, but are we really going to
cater to other people’s biases? Not that long ago, people would have been upset to see women
drivers too. That doesn’t mean we pander to it. …Ultimately, the decision is yours. You know
I want to keep our company out of the press, that is the most important thing. But we also have
to consider who we are as a company and the messages we send.” Etienne went home and gave
the matter a lot of thought. Finally he decided to …

Discussion Questions
1. What perceptual biases might be influencing Etienne’s perspective about Duane as a job
candidate?
2. How can Etienne arrive at the optimal decision in this situation? Explain your answer.