Bus Strikes Suspended After New Pay Offer
Staff at Battersea and Twickenham control rooms call off industrial action
Buses in their depot. Picture: Transport UK
May 2, 2024
Planned industrial action by bus controllers at two control rooms have been called off.
Industrial action by forty staff including controllers, managers and supervisors at Battersea and Twickenham was due to take place on 8 May but Unite the Union announced this Thursday (2 May) that it would no longer take place.
Following negotiations a new offer was tabled by the employer Transport UK (formerly Abellio), and as a result, the impending strike action was suspended to allow members to consider and vote on the latest offer.
The staff control the bus routes using GPS systems, instruct drivers on traffic jams or accidents on the routes are to take. They were offered a 5% increase last year but their union said their members already earned approximately £10,000 per year less than similar staff at other bus companies and have been offered a smaller pay increase.
Unite regional Maxine Loza said, " Transport UK has come forward with a new pay offer that will now be put to a ballot of our members. As a goodwill gesture, Unite is suspending the planned industrial action that was due to begin next week."
The routes that will be affected by the strike would have included those serving Chiswick, Brentford, Putney and Hammersmith. The full list of routes is: 24, 27, 111, 156, 159, 267, 285, 322, 344, 345, 415 , 490, 969, H20, H25, H26, R68, R70.
The control room staff have held a series of strikes since March which appear to have a limited impact on services.
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