There will be major disruption on Manchester Metrolink later this month after Unite the Union confirmed their intention to strike over the continued pay dispute. It had appeared that the dispute had been resolved during September following a revised pay offer after negotiations between the two sides but despite Union officials recommending this was accepted by members it has now been rejected leading to planned strikes on 10th, 15th, 18th and 24th October.
The threat of strike action first came about because of what was described as a “pitiful” offer – 1% over 15 months with 0.3% backdated to January-March 2021 and 0.7% for the period April 2021-April 2022. After talks between Unite the Union and KeolisAmey Metrolink officials on Monday 20th September a revised pay offer was made, although the details of this were never revealed in any of the press releases. The union went on record as saying that they were recommending this was accepted by its members and as a result the planned strikes at the end of September were suspended.
Fast forward to the start of October and the situation has changed with the Union now seeking a further pay increase – something which KeolisAmey Metrolink are currently unwilling to give. It is still unclear what has been offered as the Unite press release only mentions the original 1% offer which had been rejected outright by the union membership during a ballot.
Guillaume Chanussot, Managing Director of KeolisAmey Metrolink, said: “I’m disappointed that Unite have returned to talks only to demand yet another increase to the already greatly improved, inflation-protected offer we made on Monday 20 September. This offer was being recommended for acceptance by Unite to their members only a few days ago.
“I still hope that we can reach a resolution which avoids damaging strike action. Our improved pay offer remains available for Unite to accept at any time.
“Our focus now shifts to doing all we can to put robust contingency plans in place to ensure as many customers as possible can continue to make their journeys in the event of strike action. Unfortunately, if strike action does go ahead, there is likely to be considerable disruption to Metrolink services.”
For their part Unite have said the following, with regional officer David Roberts saying: “The tram contractor, Keolis/Amey, can avoid disruption to the Manchester marathon and our city’s other big sporting events by tabling a respectful and decent pay offer. Even at this late stage management has the power to avoid these strikes by improving the pay offer. The ball is now in Keolis/Amey’s court.”
Danny Vaughan, TfGM Head of Metrolink, commented: “The prospect of industrial action is very serious for an essential public transport service like Metrolink, and I’d encourage all parties to adopt the same constructive approach that they’ve taken so far, into the further talks that will now follow and with a view to finding a resolution. While we hope an agreement can be reached, our efforts will now be focussed on working closely with KAM and other operators to ensure sufficient plans are in place to minimise any impact on customers, should strike action go ahead.”
Strikes are now planned to take place on Sunday 10th October (the date of the Manchester Marathon), Friday 15th October, Monday 19th October and Sunday 24th October (when Manchester United play Liverpool at Old Trafford).
One wonders how much bearing the current economic climate – especially with a threat of soaring fuel bills – has had upon this rethink over the pay deal. Let’s hope we won’t see this play out across more and more transport operators’ services and to an extent which leads to widespread chaos on the roads adding a further burden to the National Economy. Let us just hope that common sense can prevail.