Workplace news in brief



Hold tight!

Transport union RMT has protested at plans to train 60 volunteer drivers to drive rural buses on the Isle of Wight. The Tory council has cut funding to Wight Bus, now it is pioneering this scheme, presumably part of Cameron’s ‘big society’.

What Cameron has never understood, viewing society from his Eton/Oxbridge bubble, is that thousands of people already spend many unpaid hours volunteering for anything from helping with children’s sports to environmental projects.

It is an insult to those people and a potential danger to bus passengers on the Isle of Wight to use volunteers to drive buses. The jobs of properly trained bus drivers are being put in jeopardy.

It is no wonder that RMT general secretary Bob Crow has said: “RMT will fight this attack on bus services, and bus staff, with every tool at our disposal.”


Pensions strike ballot

The Unison ballot for strike action against cuts in the local government pensions scheme will run from 11 October to 3 November. Members of the scheme are being faced with working longer and paying more to get less. Everyone earning over £15,000 a year is fighting an effective pay cut. This ballot is part of the plan for coordinated strike action on 30 November.

The strike covers all members of the local government pension scheme, which includes those working for companies hived off from the public sector, like the 300 workers in the Tyne and Wear Metro.


Health strike

Unison members in health and education in Northern Ireland are to strike on 5 October. The 24-hour strike is in protest at the cuts in health and education funding. Other unions are likely to join the action.


If you are involved in a dispute, ring us on 020 8988 8777 or email a report to: [email protected]