Plan to bring in drivers to cover city bus strike
Bus bosses are reportedly drawing up plans to ship in reinforcements to cover for a drivers strike on the first day of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Lothian Buses drivers will go on continuous strike from 3am on Friday, after 59 per cent of Unite members voted in favour of the action, amid accusation of a culture of bullying and harassment.
Members voted to reject a lastminute offer by Lothian chiefs, which included a 2.7 per cent pay increase – labelled “too little, too late” by union bosses.
Lothian Buses is reportedly drawing up plans to ship in reinforcements to cover for drivers going on strike later this week.
Drivers will go on continuous strike from 3am on Friday, the first day of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, after 59 per cent of Unite members voted in favour of the action, amid accusation of a culture of bullying and harassment.
Members voted to reject a last-minute offer by Lothian chiefs, which included a 2.7 per cent pay increase – labelled “too little, too late” by union bosses.
The company is now believed to be setting out a contingency strategy, if no deal can be struck by Friday, for drivers, potentially from Lothian Country and East Coast Buses to keep buses running in the Capital. But Lothian previously insisted that “any strike action will not affect Lothian County or East Coast Buses operations”.
A spokesperson for Lothian said: “We are continuing to work jointly with Unite in the hope of finding a resolution. We are doing everything we can to minimise disruption for our customers and we will share information on our website and social media channels when we can.”
It is not known how many drivers could be drafted in or how long the replacements could help sustain services, if the strike goes ahead. City council chiefs have been locked in talks with both parties across the weekend and again yesterday, but no agreement has been reached.
Transport and environment convener, Cllr Lesley Macinnes, said: “We are extremely disappointed industrial action remains on the table. The prospect of disruption to the bus service at the busiest time of the year is understandably being met with nervousness and concern right across the city.
“We are doing all that we can to avert this and are in discussions with both parties with a view to finding a resolution as soon as possible.”
Lib Dems transport spokesperson, Cllr Kevin Lang, is urging both parties to resolve the dispute – but welcomed contingency measures being drawn up.
He said :“Almost three quartersof people in edinburgh use bus services to get round the city so any strike, even for one day, risks causing major disruption. It’s why every effort needs to be made by Lothian Buses management and the unions to find an agreement that can stop this industrial action from going ahead.”