Northern Ireland public transport strikes: Unite, GMB and SIPTU to announce more TransLink bus and rail stoppages before Christmas

Friday saw significant disruption when all public transport stopped for 24 hours.

The Department of Infrastructure said last week that it does not have the budget to meet the pay demands and that "no solutions are yet forthcoming" from the Northern Ireland Office (NIO).

Representatives of the retail and hospitality sectors said – that in the wake of Covid and cost of living crisis - the disruption could “break” some of their members.

On Monday Unite, GMB and SIPTU leaders agreed a schedule of strike action, with dates to be notified to the employer on Wednesday 6 December.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said. “Translink workers are facing a huge real terms pay cut. This is completely unacceptable and must be reversed. Last Friday’s strike action shows the strength of feeling among our members. Their plans for escalated strike action has Unite’s complete support.”

GMB Regional Organiser Peter Macklin challenged the failure of the Secretary of State to intervene. “The secretary of state says that he can’t intervene to resolve this industrial dispute but the truth is that it is a direct result of the punitive budget he imposed on the department for infrastructure which left Translink with no funding for a pay increase.”

SIPTU Regional Organiser Niall McNally challenged the secretary of state to explain how he has been able to intervene repeatedly on other issues but says he cannot on transport workers’ pay.

“Chris Heaton-Harris appears to want to adopt a ‘pick and mix’ approach where he can intervene to direct policy when it suits him on some issues but then can claim he has no powers to intervene when it comes to improving workers’ pay," he said.

The Northern Ireland Office spokesperson said: “The UK Government has no authority to negotiate pay in Northern Ireland. It is for the relevant NI departments to negotiate pay policies.

“It remains the Secretary of State’s priority to see the return of locally elected, accountable and effective devolved government, which is the best way for Northern Ireland to be governed.”