Union wants compensation
Page 13
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
LONDON area hauliers are being asked to improve the compensation available to drivers who lose their HGV licence for health reasons.
The Transport and General Workers Union, which has also submitted a wage claim for drivers employed by London and South-East England hauliers, has asked for a separate meeting to discuss loss of licence compensation in light of Department of Transport plans to extend the scope of medical examinations.
Although no date has yet been set for a change, it is likely that from next year medical examinations will be required at 46 years and not 60 as now (CM, June 22). The duration of the licence will be extended from three to five years.
TGWU officer Ron Connolly has asked for a meeting with Road Haulage Association members on November 6 to "consider the implications". of the change in medical test arrangements "with a view to improving the compensation formula in the current agreement".
Both the TGWU and the RHA are keen to keep the issue separate from the annual round of wage negotiations which has begun with a claim from the London drivers.
In line with union policy, they want an ..741 across-theboard increase in basic rates, a £2 increase in overnight subsistence payments, an increase in night rate from time-and-aquarter to time-and-a-third, and a reduction in the working week from 40 to 39 hours.