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09:00, 14th
November 2006
Industrial
Action – 14th November
2006
Metroline today issued a statement on industrial action scheduled to take place on Tuesday 14th November. This action will affect bus services operated by the company in North, West and Central London and those operating in Hertfordshire. Services operated by Metroline's 2 smaller subsidaries (FE Thorpes and Armchair) are not affected and will continue to run normally.
The reason for the call
for industrial action by the union (TGWU) is the impasse
in annual pay negotiations with the union.
The company has offered
a pay increase to staff of 4.0% retrospective to April
06. Coming on the heels of a 10.9% increase in 2005,
the company believes that this is still the best deal
in London. The company has moreover expressed its
willingness to explore all possible options to resolve
the dispute in a way that is affordable to the company.
This now includes a formal offer of a 2 year deal
of 4% this year followed by an offer of 5% from April
2007. The company has also offered to go to arbitration,
an offer that has been rejected by the union.
The company believes
that the offer made by Metroline to drivers is fair
and reasonable in the context of recent improvements
to pay and our current financial performance.
The company remains committed
to resolving this dispute to avoid the disruption
that will occur to our passengers tomorrow
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Ends -
Notes
to Editors:
-
Metroline is one of the top five London-based
bus companies, currently running 13.5% of the capital’s
bus services under contract to Transport for London
- Metroline carries 250 million passengers every
year, operates 96 routes, covers over 37.5 million
journey miles each year, employs almost 3700
people and runs a fleet of over 1,200 buses
in North, West and Central London and South
Hertfordshire.
- Metroline is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Singapore
based ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited, which
is the world's second largest listed land transport
company.
For
further enquiries please contact:
Sean O'Shea, Chief Operating Officer, Metroline
020 8218 8898
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