FIGHTING FOR BUS WORKERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: june 2019 :: RMTnews 14 This year’s National Industrial Organising Conference of Bus Workers was opened by Mike Osment, Mayor of Salisbury, who spoke of the difficulties faced by the city in the last year and thanked the union for its support through holding the conference locally. RMT Wessex regional officer Mick Tosh spoke about the challenges of recruitment. “We’ve seen a huge growth in membership over the last six years and South Hants and Eastleigh branch has developed a recruitment strategy that has seen membership grow from 15 drivers to encompass 130 new members and how they’re looking to create a new Southampton Bus branch,” he said. There were a wide range of motions presented to conference including a ten-point National Bus Drivers Bill of Rights. Lee Odoms, Nottinghamshire Bus called for a national standard for bus drivers that would ensure issues such as safe work schedules, sufficient breaks, well-maintained vehicles, the right to toilet breaks and the right to report safety concerns to employers without retribution were the key demands. Paul McDonnell, Wimbledon said that these were basic human rights and something that the union been asking for now for many years. “The right to the use of the toilet was won in the Nineteenth century and I don’t know how women members can use the provided facilities and it’s down to our union to push for new legislation and for us to follow up and put in local agreements,” he said. Jason Gosling, Poole and District said that it was a good gateway to getting the driver’s cab recognised as a work environment. Another key resolution called for stress and anxiety to be recognised as an industrial illness. Under the current system a member struggling to cope with anxiety or stress will receive sick pay rather than industrial injury pay. Mark Bayliss, South Devon Bus said; “At the moment I only receive 86 per cent sick pay, I was assaulted at work but this is not seen as an industrial injury”. Tracy Strawther, East Midlands Bus added: “I believe that this causes huge distress and should be treated as an industrial injury”, whilst Mark Gale said “I work for a company that does have occupational sick pay but lots of companies don’t, so people can be assaulted and land up on SSP, and this removes the duty of care for employers. If you are a victim of assault you are a victim of a crime and you shouldn’t be punished “. Five other motions were also subject to a lively debate and these included spit kits for bus drivers’, hearing loss from engine noise, environmentally clean workstation bus/coaches, bus drivers’ seats and an emergency resolution concerning changes to Stagecoach employee’s pensions. All were carried after rigorous examination from the floor. Guest speakers included London Bus Watch campaigner, Tom Kearney. Tom was hit on the head by a bus wing mirror on Oxford Street in London and the accident left him comatose. Since his recovery Tom has become a passionate bus safety campaigner and launched a campaign to improve operational safety. He spoke about the problems that he has faced and how bus companies did not want to act transparently and accountably but, through freedom of information requests, Tom has been able to ask questions including obtaining details from TfL that revealed that 45 people have been killed and that 1017 collisions have occurred on TfL outsourced bus companies over the last five years. This has resulted in a £2.5 billion bill from collisions and deaths for the taxpayer. He also spoke of an amendment that he drafted in 2017 that would force bus companies to come clean about operational safety incidents but that this causes huge distress and should be treated as an industrial injury r ”, whilst Mark Gale said “I work for a company that does have occupational sick pay but lot y s of companies don’t, including obtaining details from TfL that revealed that 45 people have been killed and that 1017 collisions have occurred on TfL outsourced bus companies over the last five years. This has FIGHTING FOR BUS WORKERS Bus workers meeting in Salisbury call for a national standard for the grade Tom Kearney Mick Cash