John Elliott, chairman emeritus of Durham School Services will meet with reporters at 4:15 p.m. to discuss ongoing negotiations between the company and Teamsters Union in Beaufort County.

The interviews will be held at the Beaufort County School District located at 2900 Mink Point Road in Beaufort.

Local school bus drivers and monitors voted 93-2 Monday to authorize a strike if negotiations with the employer fail. About half of the district's 200 school bus drivers and monitors are union members.

They joined unionized drivers in both the Charleston County and Dorchester 2 districts, who already voted to strike if they cannot get more pay and benefits from Durham.

The Teamsters and the company failed to reach an agreement during contract negotiations Friday and Saturday in Charleston. They met again Tuesday, according to a Durham spokeswoman and the Teamsters union. Negotiations were to last three consecutive days and will focus on a different district each day, the Durham spokeswoman said. Beaufort County will be discussed Thursday.

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