Drivers' pay claim threatens chaos
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THE THREAT of total industrial chaos was still hanging over road transport operation as CM went to press.
Road tanker drivers at Esso, BP, and Texaco were banning overtime and, in common with road haulage drivers in several parts of the country, were planning strikes with effect from January 3.
In both cases, drivers are seeking increases of around 40 per cent, but the best which employers have been prepared to offer have been five per cent basic wage increases plus productivity deals of around eight per cent.
As reported in CM last week, tanker drivers are particularly concerned by the employers' intentions of altering delivery schedules in line with the productivity deals.
Scottish Road Haulage Association representatives — the area which is in the front line of the negotiations for lorry drivers' pay — were due to meet Transport and General Workers Union representatives yesterday to try to avert a strike.
Scottish RHA spokesmen are reluctant to commit themselves to any point of view in advance of their negotiations, but industry sources suggest that they are trapped between the Price Commission report on road haulage efficiency and the Government's shaky five per cent pay norm.
The fear within the industry at large is that the Government will invoke price freezing powers if the RHA does concede the Scottish drivers' claim, even if other areas such as Merseyside do join them in industrial action. On the other hand, o industry sources suspect the under-capitalised sta the road haulage industry force many hauliers to set wage claim within days strike beginning.
As one haulier told CM: must be on the road at e opportunity in order to sU business."
The tanker drivers' dis had still to have serious efi last week, with only a d creeping into deliveries of to filling stations and r transport operators.
At London Transport, plies were expected to see undertaking over the feE season, but it was on the p of considering means spreading any shortage its entire operations. No p ing order appears to have established for a run dow bus services in the capital.
The fuel firms themse are aware of the poten effect of a delay in fuel liveries, but one compan: which CM spoke said ti was no question of giving customer — not even an sential public serv preferential treatment at stage.