Pay strike warning at Linkman
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• Trade unions are warning that they may call strikes at one of the country's biggest transport firms, Linkman Tankers, unless it scraps plans to impose pay cuts of more than 25%.
Shop stewards representing drivers from the company's five main sites are meeting on Saturday (4 July) to discuss the offers which vary from depot to depot. Both the Transport and General Workers Union and the United Road Transport Union are involved.
One TGWU official, Maurice Britton, says industrial action is a strong possibility: "The lads are very angry. We shall see on Saturday how everyone feels."
He believes Linkman, which has 680 drivers and 420 trucks, is trying to impose pay cuts depot by depot in order to isolate any action by unions. "If one depot takes industrial action, work could be passed around," he says. Linkman insists that wage negotiations are proceeding and "are going well, although they have not reached a conclusion". A spokesman adds: "Linkman has a good industrial relations record. Someone has decided to put some pressure on by talking to you."
However, Commercial Motor
has obtained a draft "memorandum of agreement" written by managers at Linkman's Middlesborough premises, dated 18 June. In it basic rates of pay are reduced from £212 to .148 a week for a 40-hour week, and the minimum wage, including overtime, to £185. Many overtime rates are also cut.
Linkman, part of the giant Transport Development Group, has other depots in Altrincham, Batley, Purfleet and Runcorn. Its turnover is £33m. Wage cuts proposed at Batley could mean a driver losing between £70 and £135 from a £400 wage, says Britton.
If there was a strike across the Linkman depots, it would be the first major national industrial action in the road haulage industry for several years. John Moore, the TGWU's national secretary road transport, does not rule out a strike: "Every option is a possibility, and we have a range of options, but there are procedures to go through, including a ballot of drivers, before anything could take place."
Six weeks ago, TDG announced that it was considering wage restraint throughout its transport division, which also includes Inter-City Transport, Nexus Logistics, McKelvie, Stirland, W&J Riding and McPherson (CM 21-27 May).
Assistant divisional managing director David Williams said he did not rule out pay freezes or cuts, especially if TDG's costs were above that of its competitors.
0 The TGWU is set to maintain its moderate approach to pay claims within the road transport industry during this autumn's coming pay round.