‘Misleading claims’ put to rest

Unite, which represents bus drivers in Weymouth and Bridport, has offered to go to arbitration in a bid to solve the ‘poverty pay’ dispute.

The union said that it contacted the conciliation service, Acas yesterday (August 11) saying that it was prepared to go to arbitration in the long-running dispute with First Hampshire & Dorset Ltd.

“I was in contact with Acas yesterday offering to go to arbitration,” said Unite regional officer Bob Lanning. “This offer should finally put the nail in the coffin of misleading claims by the company that Unite is not prepared to go to arbitration.

“We have always been prepared to go to arbitration as long as any package hammered out under the auspices of Acas is put to the drivers, which is normal industrial relations’ practice.

“It is the democratic process of voting on any proposed deal that seems to irk the management so much,” he added.

“The ball is now in the company’s court and, if these talks go ahead, the process will take about two weeks to set up. I think public opinion locally would expect the company to take up the arbitration offer.”

Unite said that a further week of strike action, already announced, would still go ahead, starting at 4.30am on Monday (August 15) and ending on 4.29am, Monday, August 22.

Unite has said that the pay dispute would cost just ÂŁ48,000-a-year to settle, while the losses caused by the two month-old dispute are now ÂŁ250,000 plus and could reach ÂŁ500,000, if the industrial action continues for three months.