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The industry's reputation is fragile so we must all work to protect it
Page 19
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POLLOCK (SCOTRANS) was recently found to have shown "callous disregard" and "remarkable insensitivity" toward an employee refused time off to attend his brother's funeral and ordered by an industrial tribunal to pay him £5,765 ('Pollock (Scotrans) demonstrates 'remarkable insensitivity' to driver', CM 22 May).
The word `disappointment' doesn't come close to describing my feelings. When I began in general haulage in the 1970s my boss kept a pickaxe handle behind his desk, the better to promote industrial relations. Happily since then the UK transport industry has transformed its treatment of workers; so how did a respected haulier with a nationally known livery find itself up in front of an employment tribunal?
Consider this sorry tale from the perspective of someone outside road transport's parochial bubble. Pollock's ("Combining tradition and professionalism with excellence of service") claims that a 70-hour week isn't excessive, but to the person next to you at the bus stop it's straight from Charles Dickens. An unfortunate driver's concerns about fatigue were ignored ("Just do it,he was told) and his health was damaged. Can we assume that Pollock's management work the same long hours, apply similar criteria to office staff, and would deny themselves the opportunity to attend a family funeral?
Incredibly the company's representative maintained a straight face when telling the tribunal that an employer being brusque didn't amount to bullying. Did he really believe that this display of managerial machismo might elicit sympathy for the defence case? (It didn't.) Pollock's Alice in Wonderland world appears to lack policies to ensure the welfare of its greatest asset, drivers. What must morale now be like among those upon whose skill and experience they rely every day? Faced with an ageing demographic, the transport industry frequently complains of difficulty in recruiting young people. Not signing up seems entirely sane on this evidence.
This isn't just a tragedy for the driver involved, nor even for Pollock's good name. Such behaviour could set the industry's fragile public reputation back years.
Dave Young Former editor of Truck & Driver magazine