Brake faults claimed
Page 10
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• A truck driver told an industrial tribunal that he was sacked after refusing to drive a lorry with a faulty braking system. Michael Okey was so concerned about the defects that he called the police.
But a week later his employer, Lister Carter, of CJE Transport, Wold Farm, Pocklington, North Yorkshire, told him he was out of a job, said Okey, who is claiming unfair dismissal.
He told the Hull tribunal: "I wanted to keep my job but I knew I was breaking the law if I was driving it in that condition."
Okey claimed that the 38-tonne artic truck was made dangerous by problems including a faulty Jake brake, jammed windows in the driver's cab, exhaust fumes leaking through a rotten cab floor, and a faulty driver's seat.
Another former employee, Steaven Calderbank, told the tribunal that other drivers refused to complain for fear of losing their jobs. He added: "The same faults were on my vehicles and everybody else's to some extent...he runs everything on a shoestring."
But Carter firmly denied that the vehicle was dangerous and insisted that Okey left CJE of his own accord. He told the tribunal that within 10 days after Okey's departure, in April, only minor defects were noted when the truck was submitted for its annual test.
Carter added: "This is the first time something like this has happened in 16 years of experience....in the weeks leading up to Okey's departure there was certainly no mention of any matter that could render the vehicle in an unroadworthy condition, let alone dangerous."
The tribunal was adjourned until 31 October.