Arriva London bus drivers to walk out in dispute over pay after rejecting 7% pay offer, Unite says

ARRIVA
Arriva bus drivers will walk out for four days in June over pay disputes - with the threat of more strikes if a resolution is not met. Credit: PA

Bus drivers are to go on strike in a dispute over pay.

Unite said more than 1,700 of its members employed by Arriva in London will walk out on June 20 and 21 and June 27 and 28 after rejecting a 7% pay offer.

It says this is in effect a real terms pay cut as the real inflation rate (RPI) stands at 11.4%.

Unite said if the dispute is not resolved, further strikes will be called.

The strikes will predominantly affect routes in North and East London.

The bus garages the drivers operate from are Ash Grove, Barking, Clapton, Edmonton, Enfield, Palmers Green, Tottenham and Wood Green.

Currently, drivers start on pay rates of £13.65 an hour, which they report inadequate to live on in London.

The union said Arriva, owned by Deutsche Bahn, is effectively owned by the German government.

Around 1,700 bus drivers will go on strike - mostly impacting areas of north and east London. Credit: PA

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Arriva is an extremely wealthy company but it has got its priorities all wrong.

“It needs to be concentrating on paying its workers fairly rather than providing the German government with huge dividends.”

Unite regional officer Steven Stockwell said: “The strike action is set to create travel chaos across London but this dispute is totally of Arriva’s own making. It has had every chance to make our members an offer that meets their expectations but has refused to do so."

Over the last decade, Deutsche Bahn has paid dividends of £5 billion to the German government.

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