Northern Ireland bus and rail workers are to be balloted on strike action in pursuit of their claim for a pay increase.

Yesterday, Tuesday, 24th October, representatives and officials of the GMB, SIPTU, and Unite three trade unions agreed unanimously to proceed with an industrial ballot calling for action up to and including a strike of their members employed by Ulsterbus, Metro, and the Glider.

The unions have given Translink, Northern Ireland’s public transport provider, seven days’ notice of the ballots, which will be held from next Monday, 30 October to Thursday, 16 November for Unite members and to Friday, 17 November for GMB and SIPTU members.

If the result of the ballot is in favour of strike action. bus and rail workers would take such action from Friday, December 1st, which would result in the cancellation of all bus and rail services in Northern Ireland.

The call for a ballot follows a consultation by the unions with its members, in which 98% of Unite’s bus worker membership rejected Translink management’s zero per cent pay offer and demanded a ballot for industrial action.

Translink management has reiterated that because of the constrained funding for public transport cannot consider any pay offer or a timetable when negotiations for an improved pay offer could take place. The situation has been aggravated because there is not a functioning Stormont Executive, the Department for Infrastructure’s budget was imposed on it by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Although the unions are proceeding with their ballots, they are due to a meeting with Translink management and the Permanent Secretary for the Department for Infrastructure in the next few days.

Unite union‘s General Secretary Sharon Graham commented. “Our members voted overwhelmingly by 98.5% to reject management’s insulting zero per cent pay offer. We are now encouraging members to vote for industrial action up to and including strike action to win a proper pay increase.

“Bus and rail public transport services have been underfunded and undervalued by Stormont for years. The brutal budget cuts imposed by Chris Heaton-Harris on Northern Ireland public services have brought about this dispute by directly impacting our members. He needs to recognise that public transport workers and their unions stand in a united front in defence of public transport services and our members’ jobs, pay and terms and conditions.”

GMB Regional Officer Peter Macklin added “Our members simply refuse to be anyone’s pawns. Their pay should not be subject to a sanctions budget imposed by the Secretary of State due to the failure of politicians at Stormont. Zero per cent is simply unacceptable and means a very severe real terms reduction in pay for frontline bus and rail workers.

“We are encouraging members to vote Yes for industrial action and Yes for industrial action short of strike action to send the strongest possible signal to those in authority that we won’t be trampled on.”

SIPTU’s Regional Organiser Niall McNally said “Northern Ireland’s bus and rail services perform a vital role getting children to school, people to work and allowing people to shop, socialise and attend medical appointments. A few years ago, those who provide these services were being lauded as heroes but now they are being threatened by a crushing real-terms pay cut.

“If our members go out this will bring bus and rail services to a standstill and will have a huge wider impact both socially and economically. The actions of Chris Heaton-Harris in imposing harsh austerity budgets on departments are solely responsible for this situation but our members will not allow themselves to be abused like this.”