Tippermen go out al
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• More than 80 tippermen have stopped work at two RMC quarries in Derbyshire in a bid to secure a 20% rate increase.
The operators, who began the action at the weekend, say they will extend it to other quarries in the area if the owners do not offer other hauliers a similar rise.
They are protesting about an RMC offer of a 0.5p per tonne per mile increase, which they say amounts to only 3.8% for a journey of 21km or 6.6% for a 120km trip.
The organisers of the action say the hauliers, who have come out almost unanimously, will hold out until they win a rise of 15%, plus a 5% surcharge for dery price rises.
"Our last rise was 7.1% in May 1989. Before that it was May 1985," says Graham Bennett, a haulier who is a member of the dispute committee at RMC's Dove Holes quarry. "The quarries think they can mess us about forever more. We plan to force their hand."
About 350 hauliers working for Derbyshire quarries met at Buxton football ground on Monday to elect two representatives from each quarry to discuss further action.
They plan to present the other quarries in the area, run by Steetley and Tarmac, with an ultimatum threatening to withdraw their services unless current pay offers are dramatically improved.
On Tuesday, the new National Hauliers Association, set up earlier this year to fight for better rates, promised full support for the dispute after seeking legal advice. Malcolm White, the NHA's secretary, warns that the dispute could spread across the UK.
The action at RMC's Dove