Auckland bus drivers restart strike action in dispute over pay and conditions

Thursday, 12 March 2020

NZ Bus drivers took to the streets in December 2019 as part of their strike action over working hours and pay. (Video from December 2019)

Auckland bus drivers locked in an ongoing dispute with NZ Bus have begun a new round of strike action expected to hit rush hour.

The first in a series of rolling strikes started at 4am on Friday with drivers from the Panmure and Auckland City depots, and will run until 8am. A full list of the 150 affected services is available on the Auckland Transport site.

The strikes – the latest in an ongoing dispute about pay and conditions – were expected see the cancellation of bus services across the city and would cover other areas next week.

Drivers voted on February 11 to take industrial action if last minute talks were unsuccessful, and recent talks between NZ Bus and the Tramways Union and First Union have failed to break the deadlock.

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Last month, 86 per cent of the company's union members rejected NZ Bus' existing offer, which would have given drivers a pay rise of 43 cents an hour and taken their hourly rate to $22.50.

Thousands of rush hour commuters are expected to be affected by the latest round of strike action on Friday by Auckland bus drivers.

Tramways Union president Gary Froggatt said NZ Bus didn't make any attempt to improve its offer at a meeting on Wednesday.

'NZ Bus' management wasn't prepared to reduce the 14-hour shifts the drivers have to do and wasn't prepared to support better conditions for the drivers,' Froggatt said.

'The unions asked the company to join us in a joint approach to the council to find a solution. We also offered to set up a joint working party to find a long-term solution. But NZ Bus declined to take part.'

He said the drivers had no other option but to begin a new round of strike action starting on Friday morning.

First Union secretary Jared Abbott agreed.

'The crux of the matter is the company hasn't moved from it's position,' Abbott said. 'NZ Bus has used up all of its goodwill with our members after asking us to withhold our last strike notice to re-enter negotiations.'

It followed the cancellation of a planned strike last week by the drivers after they agreed to return to the bargaining table.

But he said the unions were still open to finding a solution.

'There's always things happening behind the scenes and we want to find a resolution.'

Auckland bus drivers want increased pay and better working conditions.

NZ Bus CEO Barry Hinkley said he wanted the union to end strike action and return to negotiations.

'We offered to continue mediation or move bargaining to facilitation under the Employment Relations Authority but the unions have so far declined this option,' he said. 'We have reached out to the union to reconsider their industrial action and get back round the negotiating table and we await their response.

'Our offer of an 8.7 per cent increase over 22 months is extremely generous, but if that offer or further mediation is not accepted by the unions, we believe that facilitation is the most logical next step and is preferable to further disruption to our customers.'

NZ Bus announced on December 6 that its services on some of Auckland's busiest routes would be cancelled from December 7 as a result of the ongoing strike action.

Many of the company's drivers had been refusing to collect fares. The company said drivers who continued to participate in the strike would be suspended.

The unions called off their industrial action on December 12 after Auckland Council asked Auckland Transport to help resolve the dispute.