Bus strike off as deal struck on rosters

UNION officials last night said they had resolved all major issues with Bus Éireann at the Workplace Relations Commission, ending the fear of pre-Christmas strikes.

National Bus and Rail Union general secretary Dermot O’Leary had warned of the possibility of a ballot for industrial action in the row over bus drivers’ rosters.

The biggest issues were resolved during the talks and, while a number of less important side issues remain, they will be agreed upon in the coming weeks.

A statement from the NBRU to RTÉ read: ‘Detailed discussions took place on many issues with a second clarification document emanating from the talks.

‘The composite rate agreed [in a] Labour Court recommendation will be implemented on December 3.

‘The NBRU aspires to deal with the underlying policy issues that caused the crisis at Bus Éireann at the Transport Forum previously agreed with Minister [Shane] Ross.’

Bus Éireann staff went on strike over the implementation of new rosters which were to be brought in as a cost-saving measure at the company, which is at risk of insolvency.

The rosters were due to be implemented on three occasions in the past, most recently last Sunday, but were deferred each time for talks yesterday.

Unions are claiming the new rosters could mean drivers may work as many as 13 hours, which Mr O’Leary said was ‘simply neither tenable nor sustainable’.

Last night, he confirmed the talks had been successful and new, amended rosters will come into place from December 3.

‘Thankfully, with the assistance of the Workplace Relation Commission today, we were able to get sight of a way forward. The rosters will be implemented from December 3 and, hopefully, the long days for drivers of working 12-13 hours a day will be no more.’