10:40am Friday 4th April 2008
By Richard Gurner
Bus drivers in Brighton and Hove will go on strike in May over pay, according to their union.
Drivers at Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company have voted overwhelmingly for the action.
After an official independent ballot has taken place, union officials will decide on either a one-day or two-day strike.
Negotiations between officials from the Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G) and company management first started in December.
It is believed drivers are furious at plans to buy new buses after being told money was not available for a pay rise.
They are also angry about the company advertising for drivers at a pay rate that had not been agreed by the union.
Roger French, the company's managing director, said in the event of the strike taking place, a service with non-striking bus drivers would operate.
Sharon Wentworth, the union's regional industrial organiser for the South East, said: "We are now at the point of taking industrial action.
"We have met the company on numerous occasions and there has been a failure to agree at every stage.
"We have taken the company's offer back to members at about six or seven meetings and at the last one they gave us a strong mandate to reject the offer and take industrial action.
"So we are now awaiting authority to go ahead with that."
Ms Wentworth said an informal ballot of 592 members revealed 404 in favour of industrial action and 188 against.
She added: "We are still discussing things but it's likely to be a 24-hour or 48- hour stoppage."
The T&G is unhappy at the tier pay structure used by Brighton and Hove Buses and wants a single rate for all drivers.
Unlike previous ballots, the T&G is now viewing unreturned ballot papers as votes in favour of strike action.
Mr French said: "They told me that 278 members had voted for. I believe they've added to the number the people who didn't return their papers, which was 126.
"We have made a very generous offer to our staff which has already been accepted by a number of groups of staff in the company.
"I don't envisage us being able to afford to increase it as it has already found acceptance with different groups of staff.
"In the worst case position, we would do our best to maintain our services with drivers who don't want to take industrial action and keep working.
"The 126 people, I suspect, don't want to strike so there would be 314 people who would want to keep working.
"With half the workforce working we would still be able to run a good service."
The pay deal on the table varies for drivers with different lengths of service with the company.
Some drivers have been offered a rise of inflation plus one per cent while others, such as drivers who have been with the company for ten years, have been offered 2.75 per cent.
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