Unite the Union have announced that they are to ballot their members working on the Manchester Metrolink network over what they describe as a “woeful” pay offer from KeolisAmey Metrolink (KAM). If the ballot results in a vote in favour of strike action its likely that the union will aim to strike over the Parklife weekend which is usually one of the busiest of the year on the Metrolink network.
The pay offer made by KAM is 5% which would cover a 15 month period as the company are wanting to change the date of an annual pay increase from 1st January to 1st April. In the press release from Unite they note that wages start from as low as £20,000 (customer service relations) with drivers salaries starting at £22,000 and engineers at £26,000.
Sharon Graham, Unite General Secretary, said: “Metrolink are guilty of making a woeful offer to our members. This is a company operated by two incredibly wealthy multinationals who can fully afford to make a fair pay offer but have chosen not to. Unite is entirely focussed on the jobs, pay and conditions of its members and the workers at Metrolink will receive the union’s complete support.”
The ballot opened on Thursday 11th May and will close on Thursday 25th May. With the two weeks notice needed before calling a strike this would put the Parklife event at Heaton Park (10th and 11th June) in the sights of any planned industrial action.
Rob Cox, HR Manager for KAM, said: “We have received notification from Unite of their intention to ballot their members for strike action. We will await the outcome of this ballot before deciding next steps.”
Danny Vaughan, TfGM Metrolink Director, added: “A strike that weekend will clearly be disruptive and impact more than just festival goers. We are closely monitoring the situation and will of course keep passengers updated once we have been notified of the outcome of the ballot.”