6 Oct 2010

Merseyside strike called off - again!

A planned strike by bus workers at Stagecoach Merseyside was called off on Friday of last week, after management offered a new pay deal.
Workers were voting on the deal as Socialist Worker went to press. The new offer is 5.1 percent over two years, with some of the money backdated. Yet this is only 0.1 percent more than the original offer—which was lowered to 4 percent on the eve of an earlier planned strike.
The deal also contains promises to resolve issues over workplace harassment. Unite union reps report that this increased during the dispute and become a key issue.
Workers should reject the new offer and return to strikes. Management can’t get away with making last minute “offers”—in some cases even worse than the original—to get action suspended. The best way to beat bullying is to show that workers won’t be pushed around.

No comments: