Stagecoach bus drivers in Sunderland are set to strike during the Christmas period in a row over pay.
The bus operator confirmed that drivers are set to hold 10 days of strike action in November and December as part of an ongoing pay dispute. The planned walkouts are set to cause disruption to passengers over the festive period, with drivers set to strike on the following dates: November 5, November 15 to 19, December 23 and 24, and December 26 to December 27.
The Sunderland bus drivers have already taken six strike days in anger over what the GMB union is calling "poverty pay". The union said the offer of a four per cent rise, with a further two per cent to follow later in the year, is a "real terms pay cut" to drivers during the cost of living crisis.
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Stuart Gilhespy, GMB union organiser, said: “It’s not clear why Stagecoach is punishing loyal drivers like this. They’re making pots of money, but want workers to survive on miserly pay and Dickensian working conditions.
“Drivers are doing the only thing they can to make ends meet for their families – withdrawing their labour. Instead of continuing to bring misery to their staff and the people of Sunderland, why won’t Stagecoach get round the table and offer a pay deal to help drivers with the cost of living crisis?”
The GMB Union says that Stagecoach made an operating profit of £58m in the financial year ending April 2022.
However, Stagecoach said that the figure is "misleading" as it is before other significant costs, including taxation and finance. It said that profits also have to fund investments to benefit customers, and just one new double-decker electric bus costs £450,000.
A Stagecoach North East spokesman said: "The GMB are desperately trying to deflect the focus from the damage they are doing to communities in Sunderland. Stagecoach executives voluntarily took pay cuts during the pandemic and received no pay increases or bonuses for a number of years.
"At the same time, the jobs of our frontline workers were protected and this year we have been focused on delivering pay increases for bus drivers across the country to reflect the current cost-of-living challenges. The profits we make go towards finance costs, taxes which help fund public services, and investment which benefits our customers and local communities, including the introduction of new greener buses."
Stagecoach has reassured customers that it "will be doing everything it can to keep services running" during the strike period. The bus operator called on the union to stop the strike so discussions over pay can continue.
"Stagecoach North East has made offers to the GMB union which would make Sunderland drivers amongst the highest paid of any bus drivers in the region," a Stagecoach spokesman said.
"In spite of this, today's announcement regarding further industrial action represents yet another demonstration of GMB attempting to maximise disruption to local communities during an important period for families across Sunderland.
"We would like to assure customers that, if these strike days go ahead, we will be doing everything we can to keep services running to support our local communities, with full service details announced at our earliest opportunity.
"We continue to urge GMB to reopen talks with us to try and agree a realistic pay deal rather than taking further days of action which are impacting our drivers and customers."
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