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Central Scottish goes to ACAS
Page 22
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• The dispute which has kept Central Scottish buses off the road since 10 April has gone to arbitration. The dispute was sparked off by the dismissal of four shop stewards for allegedly encouraging workers to break their contracts by holding mass meetings.
Managing director David McCracken says each side is meeting ACAS separately because management refuses to recognise the sacked shop stewards representing the workforce. The dispute is costing Central an estimated £200,000 a week. "Clearly we cannot continue indefinitely, and sometime in the future we may have to close the company," warns McCracken.
The dispute is rooted in refusal of Central busmen to implement a productivity deal signed by all Scottish Bus Group companies in July 1987. A seven-week strike in January and February was followed by the introduction of new rosters in line with the agreement.
Faced with the likelihood of management getting an injunction, the Transport and General Workers Union has given an undertaking not to stage strike ballots in other SBG companies. "The situation is nonsense," says McCracken. Skilled engineering staff, inspectors and office staff are still at work, and no further dismissals have been made.
TGWU Scottish trade group secretary Archie Wilson says that the four shop stewards were sacked because they held a meeting with Kelvin Scottish union leaders to discuss a possible worker buy-out of the two companies. This conflicted with proposals for a management-employee bid.
Other operators in the area — Wilsons of Carnwath, Whitlaw of Stone, McKenna of Bells Hill, Hutchisons of Overtown and Bruce of Airdrie — have introduced extra services and strengthened existing ones to cover the dispute.