sheffield swp

STAGECOACH WORKERS ON THE MARCH AGAINST BOSSES

Stagecoach bus drivers in Rawmarsh and Barnsley had their 9th day of strike action today, Saturday 4th of February. Todays strike was just the first day of 4 days of strikes planned for the 6th, 8th and 10th of February.
 The drivers are fighting for fair pay. Bus drivers in Barnsley and Rawmarsh are the lowest paid drivers in south Yorkshire, they are striking for a pay rise to £9 an hour but the bosses are reluctant to budge, despite stagecoach boasting a record 50 percent rise in profits this year.
 This strike was also supported with a march and rally in Barnsley town centre. The march was called by Barnsley trades council and supported by trade unionists from across south Yorkshire. Workers ploughed through freezing temperatures in the town centre chanting: ‘the workers united will never be defeated’ it was clear that the community was behind them. As the march went on you could feel the workers confidence grow. 

There was a multitude of banners present on the march from various unions across south Yorkshire including: NUT, GMB, UNITE, UNISON and NAPO as well as the Barnsley trades council banner. The drivers had strong picket lines of over 90 people outside the bus depo, one of the strongest pickets of the on-going dispute. The strike has been consistently solid with only a small minority of workers crossing picket lines. They are still confident that if they hold out they can win. 


You can tell from the immense scabbing operation that the company is still intent upon running (paying scabs £150 on top of the normal wage) Its clear that this dispute is less about money and more about smashing the union and the rights of workers. That is why it is ever more important that the drivers win and that is why it is even more important that they link their struggle with many of the other struggles taking place across the country, it is important that the wider trade union movement back this fight. If the drivers in Barnsley and Rawmarsh win it will send a message to stagecoach and other bus drivers across the country that workers have the ability to challenge the profit driven multinationals that degrade and exploit people on a daily basis. It will give workers elsewhere the confidence to say that we won’t take this shit. We will fight for every penny, every job and every hour you try to steal from us.

Jack Hetherington