Are worker bees driven out of the hive in the autumn?

The queen doesn't, but the workers do. They throw the drones out of the hive to die at the end of the season. It may seem hard, but the queen's egg laying is much reduced, and there will be no new queens until the next season. The drones do no work in the hive -- they are only there to mate with new queens. They would just be a drain on valuable food resources during the winter, and the queen can lay new drone eggs in the spring.