Unite the Union has announced that over 380 bus drivers employed by Stagecoach West and based throughout Gloucestershire and Wiltshire will take part in a month long strike in a dispute over low pay.
Strike action, which Unite said was backed overwhelmingly by the drivers who are members, will begin on Thursday 10 March and continue until Saturday 9 April, coinciding with the Cheltenham Festival. Unite said the strike is set to cause considerable disruption to the event as Stagecoach has the contract to take festival goers to and from the racecourse.
In a statement, Unite said: “With many drivers paid under £11 per hour, Unite has been pressing for an increase in line with real inflation, currently at 7.8%. However, Stagecoach has tabled offers that are in effect pay cuts.”
It is the first time ever that the drivers have voted for industrial action. Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite has given Stagecoach West every opportunity to make a fair pay offer to avoid strike action but it has failed to do so. Our members at Stagecoach West have made it very clear that they will accept nothing less than a significant pay rise and they have Unite’s full support in this fight.”
The strike action will affect all of Stagecoach West’s service operating from the Bristol, Cheltenham, Coalford, Gloucester, Stroud, and Swindon depots.
A Stagecoach West spokesperson said: “Around 40% of bus drivers in these areas are not members of Unite and have not voted for strike action. In recent negotiations, Unite has been demanding pay increases of up to 22%, which would put the viability of many community bus routes at risk at the very time they are already under strain. We are committed to giving our people affordable pay rises, on top of the increases we have given over the past two years during the difficult period of the pandemic.”
