Fortnight of further strike dates announced, in Bristol bus dispute
Over 600 drivers from First West of England's City Line will walk out again next month
Unite have announced further strike dates in their dispute over pay with First Bus in Bristol.
Over 600 drivers from First West of England's City Line will walk out for two weeks next month.
The drivers, members of Unite, are already in the middle of a four-day strike, the last day of which is tomorrow.
After talks broke down between First West of England, part of First Bus, and the union, workers from the affected depots, Lawrence Hill and Hengrove, will now be walking out from 1 to 14 October.
Unite says it expects the action to be extremely disruptive.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "First Bus is a very profitable firm, but its hardworking workers are struggling to pay the bills – the situation is deplorable and it is little wonder they have voted to take further industrial action.
"This dispute has been entirely the fault of the employer who has put profits over people throughout. We will support the affected members every step of the way throughout this dispute."
Unite regional officer Amy Roberts said: "Unite has attempted to negotiate with First West of England in good faith, but it has been unwilling to come back to the table.
"We appreciate the strikes have been very disruptive, especially for those making essential journeys, but drivers have felt no choice but to extend the industrial action given the way they have been treated by First West of England.
"These workers do a difficult, essential job and deserve to be paid fairly. First West of England has a chance to stop further disruption, but must come back to the table with a fair offer to do so."
Speaking yesterday, Managing Director of First West of England, Doug Claringbold said:
"We recognise that this ongoing disruption is hugely inconvenient to customers and we can only apologise that travel plans are being affected.
"We remain disappointed that our full and final pay offer, which is significantly above inflation, was rejected, resulting in these disruptive strikes.
"We have been committed to improving the pay of drivers and continue to do so. Since 2021 a Bristol driver’s basic earnings has increased from just over £24,000 to more than £31,000 - a 31% increase. This pay offer would increase these basic earnings to over £33,000, with many drivers earning significantly more than this. Alongside pay, we are also investing heavily in staff facilities and conditions, including new buses and uniforms, and provide a range of benefits including health schemes.
"Despite our final pay offer being rejected – even though it was accepted in other areas across the region - we still hope to find a solution with the trade union to encourage them to call off their strikes.
"We have revised some of our timetables for Bristol, and encourage customers to check our website for more details before travelling.”
A demo is due to be held at Broad Quay near the Hippodrome in Bristol, between 10am and 4pm tomorrow.