Irish hauliers claim blockade win
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• Angry hauliers have called off their blockade of a meat firm which crashed owing them money, after winning guarantees of work from the new owner. For more than a month 50 Irish operators picketed factories previously owned by United Meat Packers. Now UK hauliers who face ruin in similar circumstances are being urged to follow their Irish counterparts' example.
"Operators in other countries are prepared to do this sort of thing — why can't we here?" asks Mike Pickering of hauliers' co-operative Unit 91.
The Irish hauliers were backed by the Irish Road Haulage Association. They have received Z1r200,000 (Z186,000) from UMP's receiver, but say they are still owed ZIr335,000 (Z312,000). The Irish Road Haulage Association plans to pursue the receiver for the remaining money.
Fearing legal reprisals from Avonmore Foods — the new owners of three of the plants — the hauliers called off the blockade to negotiate new wonl ing conditions.
These include the blockadin hauliers gaining first refusal c work; fortnightly payments; an a yet-to-be-decided "fair an equitable rate".
Irish Road Haulage Assoc ation spokeswoman Sheil McCabe says: "The guys are bit depressed about it, but ; least they can see a way of tra( ing themselves out of the lox It'll wipe out their profits for th next two years but at least the have got work."
• The publication of the reasons behind tIT Transport Tribunal's revocation of John Dee Ltd's 0-licence are being eagerly awaited ii the industry this week. Two weeks ago the tribunal decided to overturn North Eastern LA Frederick Whalley's decision to grant a licence to the new John Dee company.
The reasons for allowing the appeal by the Road Haulage Association against the licence will not be published until next week JDL will then have six weeks to appeal. McCabe praises Avonmore for its reasonable behaviour towards UMP's creditors, saying the company has consistently worked with the hauliers to regam their money.
Arid she believes the blockade was a success for the haulage industry as a whole: "It showed the companies in this country that hauliers can come together when they're stood on. It'll probably have to be done again so companies really understand.
"The economy relies so much on road transport and hauliers are treated like second class citizens," says McCabe. The blockade brought home to the public that they are normal guys being pushed out of business. There are around 4,000 hauliers in Eire and we're getting towards crisis proportion with the overcapacity in the industry."
Many of the hauliers had worked full-time for UMP before it went into receivership earlier this year. A number of them even cleared up after a fire at one of the plants and had received no payment.
The receivers, Deloitte and Touche, admit that the hauliers were badly treated by UMP, but warn that they will be lucky to receive any more cash than they have already.