Tram staff to vote on strike over job fears

Tram staff in Edinburgh are being balloted for industrial action after union members claimed a “damaging culture of blame” leaves them fearing for their jobs.

The Unite union is holding a consultative ballot, and alleges that disciplinary action taken against some of its members has been “unjust”.

Union members raised a collective grievance in August claiming management were inconsistent in disciplinary matters. Unite said since then one member had been dismissed and others disciplined.

Edinburgh Trams said it has confidence in its internal processes.

Unite regional officer Lyn Turner said: “The management culture within Edinburgh Trams shows a pattern where the assumption of blame is the first choice of some managers.

“Unite accepts that safety is the primary concern at all times. However, the decision by management to escalate what we see as a few incidents that did not compromise safety to disciplinaries and sacking offences is simply unreasonable and unjust.”

An Edinburgh Trams spokeswomanadded:“our communication channels remain open as we aim to identify and resolve their concerns.” She said trams would run as normal in the meantime.