New pay deal agreed on Supertram

Proposed strikes later this month on Stagecoach Supertram have been suspended after a new pay deal was put on the table after discussions with Unite the union. This is a slightly improved offer from that which had previously been rejected and will now go back to the membership to see whether they agree, the union are recommending it is accepted but there is still no guarantee this will be the end of the saga.

The new deal is part of a three year package which will see a 30p per hour increase for both drivers and conductors in year one, 29p per hour in the second year and then 2.5% rise in year three. There will also be a reduction in contracted weekly hours and an enhanced overtime rate built into the deal

If accepted this will see the annual salary for tram drivers rising by over £1700 over the three years, for conductors it will be an increase of £1600 and for Tram-Train drivers it will also be a £1700 increase.

A new ballot is due to take place next with the union recommending that the deal is accepted. In the meantime the latest batch of strike dates announced earlier this week have been suspended and a normal service will run until notification otherwise.

Tim Bilby, Stagecoach Supertram Managing Director, said: “We made positive progress during yesterday’s talks and we are pleased to now have an offer that the union is willing to recommend for acceptance. All planned strike action has been suspended and our tram services continue to run as normal. We look forward to the outcome of the ballot and to what we hope will be a resolution which allows us to get back to our main focus which is running high quality tram services for the people of Sheffield.”

Steve Clark, Unite regional coordinating officer, added: “We had constructive talks with the company yesterday under the auspices of Acas. We reached an agreement on a three year pay deal which we are recommending our members accept. As a result, the planned strike action has been suspended.”

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