IT HAS BEEN A DIFFICULT YEAR FOR MANY electric vehicle companies. Despite overall growth in EV sales from 2023, EV makers Tesla and Rivian announced layoffs this year as their stock prices slid.
But one EV maker stands out: Georgia-based Blue Bird has seen its stock price soar more than 100 percent since January as the company electrifies more of the familiar yellow buses it sends to school districts around the country.
Founded in 1927, Blue Bird is approaching a century of operation, and it appears on Newsweek's rankings of the Most Trustworthy Companies in America and the World's Most Trustworthy Companies. While the basic appearance of its main product hasn't changed that much over the years, the company's recent success comes amid some major changes.
As well as expanding its EV capacity, the company recently announced safety additions to its buses such as three-point safety belts for passengers and air bags for drivers-both industry firsts. Last year, Blue Bird workers voted to join a union and about 1,500 of its approximately 2,000 workers are now represented by the United Steelworkers of America. In May, the union and company finalized a contract substantially raising worker pay and adding benefits.
Conventional business wisdom might say that adding safety features and paying higher wages would increase an automaker's costs, making it less competitive as it ventures into the uncertain EV market. But Blue Bird has schooled the skeptics to become the country's top-performing EV maker.
"Blue Bird shows that as an EV company, you can still make money, and Blue Bird is doing that with every bus that we sell," Blue Bird President Britton Smith told Newsweek in a wide-ranging interview.
This story is from the July 26, 2024 edition of Newsweek US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the July 26, 2024 edition of Newsweek US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
George Lopez
GEORGE LOPEZ HAS DONE A LOT IN HIS LONG CAREER. BUT NOW, WITH NBC's Lopez vs Lopez, George knows what's most important \"is the people you get to be around and get to talk to.\"
Asher Grodman
ASHER GRODMAN IS PERFECTLY FINE PLAYING a ghost on CBS' Ghosts who walks through the afterlife without any pants. \"I don't really want to die in the state that Trevor died.
Last Rodeo for 'Yellowstone'
The hit TV series is set to conclude without main man Kevin Costner, but his onscreen son Luke Grimes is convinced viewers will be surprised and satisfied by the season finale
SURVEY SAYS...
Exclusive polling for Newsweek on key issues highlights where presidential candidates DONALD TRUMP and KAMALA HARRIS need to win votes to succeed to the White House
'Iran Can Be Pushed Back Against Hard'
Former British Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair talks exclusively to Newsweek about resolution in the Middle East and the role of the U.S. in achieving it
Jenny Slate
JENNY SLATE IS READY TO BE HERSELF
Mikey Madison
MIKEY MADISON HAS BEEN DREAMING OF A film like Anora since she started acting as a teenager on Better Things.
AMERICA'S BEST AMBULATORY SURGERY CENTERS 2025
AMBULATORY SURGERY CENTERS CONTINUE to play a crucial role in modern health care.
THIS is a MOMENT for ARAB AMERICANS'
With the escalating ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR weighing heavily on Muslim voters in key battleground states, will foreign policy be KAMALA HARRIS' election downfall?
Fresh Takes on Modern Problems
Newsweek Horizons events series kicks off with panels on Alin medicine and climate science