Why do these men get more?
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YOUR REPORT (CM, January 17, p3) of an £83 basic, plus £4 supplement and a 55-hour {£133.68) guaranteed week for drivers employed at Birming ham Perry Bar Container Terminal is provocative and raises a number of questions.
Why do drivers employed on this type of work receive a higher wage than others in the general goods field?
Is it because there is some market restriction which does not permit hauliers from the general goods field to compete for container traffic at this terminal?
If so, is this protected market an offspring of liner companies who see a protected market as a normal one in which to operate, or is it another example of imbalance of power between trades unions and management (which the Employment Act 1980 has done little to change)? • Why have employers in the West Midland Area not com plained to the Office of Fair Trad ing (Field House, Bream's Buildings, London EC4 1PR) if they are not free to quote and deploy their vehicles on work from this container terminal?
F. K. SHORT
F. Short & Sons Ltd Gateshead