Iain Dalton, Socialist Party Yorkshire
Around 400 workers at Alexander Dennis bus manufacturers in Scarborough have taken a week’s strike action over pay. At the busy picket line, cars honked support during the morning rush hour.
Wages have fallen behind the cost of living, with wage increases almost 20% behind since 2021.
A Unite rep told me that workers feel particularly aggrieved due to having agreed to short-time working last year when the order book was slow. They are also paid less than at the company’s other two sites in Scotland.
Bus manufacturing in the UK is in crisis, facing huge competition from overseas, particularly in electric buses. Another Yorkshire-based manufacturer, Optare, closed last year. Alexander Dennis’ two sites in Scotland are under threat of closure, with many workers currently furloughed on full pay.
Workers told me that Wrightbus in Northern Ireland undercuts wages at other UK manufacturers, in order to produce cheaper. Wrightbus was bought out, after entering administration in 2019, by the Bamford family, owners of JCB and big Tory Party donors.
Workers were calling for changes in procurement procedures to help retain jobs. But public ownership as part of a plan for producing renewable-powered buses will be the only way to securing a future for skilled and well-paid jobs in UK bus manufacturing.
