Stagecoach staff were met with cries of ‘scab’ from a picket line in Liverpool as the company was accused of undermining strike action in the city.
Today marks the first day of action for around 500 Liverpool bus drivers who took to the picket line outside the company’s Gillmoss depot on the East Lancashire Road.
Unite union members are seeking a pay rise that better reflects the hourly pay of other business owners in the region, but Stagecoach said it made an offer that brought these rates significantly closer together, while remaining more favorable than others’ terms, conditions and benefits .
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This morning, as the strike got underway, Stagecoach was accused by the union of trying to ‘undermine’ its members’ action by deploying managers elsewhere in the country to come to Liverpool and drive buses.
Video footage from the picket line in Gilmoss this morning shows a number of buses leaving the depot and being met with angry shouts of ‘scab’ and other terms from those taking industrial action. The video also shows that Merseyside Police were involved in temporarily closing the road to allow buses to leave the depot.
Unite regional officer Brian Troake said: “This morning at around 5am several buses packed with Stagecoach managers from across the country who were here to undermine and break the picket line pulled up.
“Stagecoach has put money into this by putting them up in hotels – rather than focusing on working with their staff to resolve this.”
He added: “When the buses turned out this morning they had a police escort as the East Lancs Road was closed to allow them out, which was disappointing to see.”
“Our members are here exercising their democratic right to withdraw their labor and instead of respecting that, Stagecoach is going the other way.”
Mr Toake added that he believes Liverpool residents ‘know the score’ and chose not to use the buses that disrupted the strike action.
He added: “We saw a number of these buses leaving virtually empty on the roads. We think word has gotten out and the good people of Liverpool are boycotting them.”
Responding to the union’s claims, Matt Davies, director of Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire, said: “Stagecoach today operates a limited dedicated service, staffed by volunteer managers and supervisors.
“Our service is targeted at areas where there would otherwise be no bus service and we also operate a shuttle service to Anfield Stadium in response to requests from the Police and Liverpool City Region to prioritize that service for public safety reasons. We respect the right to intervene in industrial action, but we must also provide our communities with the best possible service.
“We deeply regret that the industrial action has taken place and are open to resolving this dispute and are available to hold discussions at any time. We sincerely want to resolve the dispute, but the total cost of a wage increase must be payable in the deposit. We have advised Unite of a number of ways in which we could resolve the dispute; these involve bipartisan movement, and we are prepared to do that.”
Today was the first of possibly several days of strike action affecting Stagecoach in Liverpool. Drivers will also get out tomorrow (Tuesday).
If no agreement is reached after these two days of action, the union plans to step things up next month, with further proposed strikes between July 5 and 8 and between July 12 and 15. The union says this will then be escalated to a total, ongoing strike if an agreement is not reached.
Speaking about the involvement of Merseyside Police, Chief Inspector Matthew Moscrop said: “Officers have been on East Lancs Road today directing traffic around Gillmoss Depot.
“Officers are monitoring the location to ensure the safety of the wider road network and to minimize disruption to road users.”
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