Unions say strike over bus pay would bring Northern Ireland to a standstill as industrial unrest grows

Unite had already announced a pending strike this coming Monday by an array of public workers dissatisfied with their pay.

Now the GMB has said that from tomorrow onwards, it and Unite are setting in motion a ballot process of their members, with a view to striking in April if its members vote that way.

The unions say that the actions will involve bus drivers, cleaners, and shunters (who are responsible for moving buses about within depots).

It said any strike will “close the entire bus network within Northern Ireland”, and leave the Province in a state of “complete shutdown”.

It is understood GMB has between several hundred to 1,000 members working on buses in Northern Ireland, with a couple of thousand other workers being represented by Unite.

The GMB said railway workers are not included in the coming ballot action.

Translink said that, as far as it was concerned, the pay offer it had made “is fair and reasonable”.

It added: “We’re currently awaiting the outcome of the trade unions’ ballot process and we remain focused on finding a suitable agreement that won’t impact passengers.”

The industrial unrest comes against a backdrop of sharply rising prices across the British Isles.

The Bank of England measures the inflation rate across the UK using the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) as its base.

This involves computing how much a basket of basic goods costs from year to year.

The bank also factors in “owner occupiers’ costs” (in other words, things like the mortgage and maintenance costs that homeowners pay), making a new measure: CPIH.

The bank’s most recent findings on inflation stem from January, when CPIH inflation stood at 5.5% – meaning the cost of living in general is 5.5% higher than a year ago.

However, it also says that it expects inflation to pass the 7% mark this spring.

Much of the rise is related to surging oil and gas prices as a result of the war in eastern Europe.

The GMB and Unite unions are calling for a 6% pay hike for its bus workers in Northern Ireland, but say “Translink bosses have refused to budge from their offer of 3%”.

The vote on strike action will end on April 1, and “is the first ballot for pay related industrial action in almost two decades” for Translink, according to the GMB.

Meanwhile, Unite says that on Monday its members will go on strike at all eleven councils in Northern Ireland, plus:

The Education Authority;

NI Housing Executive;

NW Regional College;

Belfast Metro College;

St Columb’s College;

SE Regional College;

Lumen Christi College;

and Northern Regional College.

Unite’s general secretary Sharon Graham said that its workers had been offered a 1.75% pay bump, something which will not meet “punishing living costs”.

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