RMT members have voted to reject an offer from Southern Vectis which would have seen a 10% pay increase, opening up the possibility of industrial action.
RMT’s Lead Officer and representatives previously held talks with Southern Vectis and after the rejection of the company’s initial offers, eventually received a ‘final offer’ of a 10% increase across all grades and on all allowances, effective 4th June 2023.
This included a £0.50 per hour overtime enhancement to the Travel Office Clerk role once 39 hours have been worked in any working week.
However, members felt that they should be paid the same as others within the Go South Group, noting that Drivers and Engineering grades are paid better, leaving members to feel that they are being treated differently as they are Island based.
The National Executive Committee then instructed the RMT to hold an e-referendum on the offer and with the Lead Officer recommending that they vote to reject the deal, members had until 10:00 yesterday (Thursday) to cast their votes.
Michael Lynch, General Secretary of RMT said:
“The referendum has concluded with members voting to reject the Company’s offer. The National Executive Committee has considered this matter and taken the decision to inform the Company of our rejection of their offer and to urgently seek an avoidance of dispute meeting.”
Andrew Wickham, Southern Vectis’ managing director, has told Island Echo:
“I am disappointed that the trade union has not communicated this result to us. We feel our offer – which includes an above inflation pay rise – is fair and reflects the high regard we have for Southern Vectis employees.”
“Representatives from Southern Vectis will once again meet with the trade union in a bid to come to an agreement on pay.”
Turned down 10%?
How dare they threaten to take industrial action – which will affect everyone who uses the buses and most passengers.
Be nice if state pensions went up that amount.
Pensions increased by 10.1%.
And where did that get us, My wife got a letter today putting the cost of her home support up by 20%.
I think they should be paid the same as the mainland staff any way. Mind you, we should pay the same fares as they do on the mainland.
You know the state pension increased by 10.1%, right?
You know pensioners get free bus travel, right?
Just saying.
Index linked ya donut!
Triple locked.
They did dopey
what and upset the freeloading parasites that get free bus travel – omg heaven forbid that the freeloading junkies can’t get to the benefits office to sign on, then to the docs to get their prescription and then to the chemist.
How dare you call the majority of hard working and retired people parasites and freeloading.I personally and have many thousands of us have never seen inside a Benefit office. I myself and many others have worked all our lives and deserve what little travel perks are available.
With Bus Fares reduced, pay increases are not achievable.
government reimburses the bus companies the money
NO, not the gov, WE, those of us who pay taxes anyway, so don’t include tax credit claiming 16hrs a week working ‘muvers’ who pay none yet take out hundreds a week in benefits and free rent and c.tax.
With Bus Fares reduced, pay increases are not achievable
The Islands bus drivers have an easy time compared to those in S.London, Manchester, Birmingham etc, who have to deal with endless abuse, violence from beings who can hardly speak our language. My Brother worked their for a few years and has no happily retired but it was becoming unbearable from mostly these people.
vectis has a big problem with abuse my niece told me.she worked there but soon left.problem is iow council gives free travel to every bit of scum on the island.just watch your see lot of folks just show the driver a paper card.when they do that they travel for free.driver presses a button then vectis bills the council for that persons journey.
Never look down on people who speak broken English, as they speak at least two languages. Unlike yourself, who, from reading your post has difficulty expressing yourself in your mother tongue.
When will some of these (Unionised) people accept that their pay depends upon the REAL pounds, shillings and pence that are earned by their Employers before they make ‘Inflation Busting’ DEMANDS?
The vast majority of ordinary WORKING people have to accept that you cannot ‘expect’ money, money, money…?
Try, for ONCE in your lives, cutting your cloth to living to your actual (and REAL) income?
You cannot gave EVERYTHING that you want, just because YOU want it!
Maybe they, along with everyone else who is taking industrial action, are fed up with over a decade of year-on-year real-terms pay cuts while the great and powerful award themselves huge pay rises and bonuses.
You keep on tugging that foredeck, but the majority of working people have had enough.
This country now has a massive skills shortage due to the pandemic, Brexit and the crackdown on immigration. That gives workers real power. Most don’t need to strike. They simply go to their bosses and demand more pay or they go to a competitor.
Those, like SV drivers who, due to SV’s monopoly on the Island, can’t easily jump ship, strike. Worth noting that wages for mainland drivers are better because they compete for drivers.
Totally agree ,if everyone demands 10per cent or above inflation will go through the roof ! Every time this cycle repeats itself ,and it’s us who cut their coat according to their cloth that suffer, think about it 1gets a payrise, costs go up ,then the next 1 says,we need to put the price up, and the vicious circle is set on motion…..
Sat on their butt don’t even have to deal with cash an easy job.
You try driving a 12-16 tonn bus through narrow roads and concentrating on keeping passengers safe. At the same time concentrating on the roads for up to 5 hrs a day. Become a bus driver then see if your pay stretches for a whole month and deal with rude passengers
You know what the job entails when you go fo for it, so if you are not happy leave / or don’t do it in the first place !!!!!! You’re choice….
Plus you do have all the training and licence requirements paid for …..
Over £2000……
you can still pay cash
Who put the Idea out there for pay rise I bet it was the union, if your not happy with the pay then get a bus driving job in Portsmouth or Southampton oh wait a minute with the cost of ferry travel your be worst off, besides we all know southern vectis has a high job turnover no one seems to stay there, so good luck on that I say just take the 10% and stop letting the unions running your lives.
So at best they were offered a 1% pay cut. But we all know inflation is way above the official figures. They say to get inflation under control everyone has to take a pay cut. I have a better idea, stop printing money!
Fair play to them, take the fight to the IW transport monopolies!
If you use the bus to get to work, you should get compensation because of loss of earnings, it won’t happen of course as Southern Vectis bosses run the company like a nazi style regime. Ever wondered why there are no other bus companies on the island, and those that tried, got bullied and harrased by Southern Vectis.
If the government weren’t sponsoring bus trips now, all the RMT members would be out of a job. Get back to eating donuts and driving buses – give the guys that need to travel to work a chance.
Fare increase on the way then to pay for it.
lol Go South Group make way more money from Southern Vectis than there other brands, but the won’t pay the employees the same as mainlanders.
Good luck brothers
i started on the buses in 79. at that time drivers were on the same money as train drivers. over the years train drivers pay shot up because they had a good union. bus drivers work increased with the loss of conductor’s and their pay and working conditions deteriorated. domestic drivers hours were not reduced to reflect their increased work load. management since privatisation have pushed drivers hours to their limits which now mean your bus driver could be driving for 5 and a half hours before he gets 30 mins out of the cab to then drive for another 4 and half hours. thats day in day out. a strike is well overdue. andrew wickem is a nice man but totally out of touch.
Pay them the same equivelent rates as the mainland and there will not be a strike or a turnover of staff
What’s the difference in the iow pay to the mainland ??
Read the acticle
If you’re not happy with your pay or working conditions then perhaps it’s time to look for another job?
Why would you stay with an employer who, in your mind, doesn’t pay you what you’re worth?
Leave, go and find the better paid job elsewhere. It’s what most of us do throughout our lives, we move on to what we think are better prospects, better pay, or better conditions.
10 per cent sounds good but they are terribly underpaid.would you wanna do that job for that wage ???.my niece left there as she said you would not beleive the abuse that the drivers have to suffer.what does the company do? not a thing because they dont give a stuff about the driver.i reckon they told them to stick the offer because they are sick off being treated like there less than human.
Not poor enough to have to be a bus wanker, not my problem
They surely should be paid in line with their mainland subsidiaries? They do a great job and should fight for what they deserve. I’ve never had any issues on the buses, nothing but good things to say about SV.
Perhaps they would settle for the 10% if they were allowed to work from home like many others these days?
Why should they get 10% rise anyway, all day spent sitting down ,no real intelligence needed
to drive round in circles
10%… Wow… How many employees would jump at the chance of a 10% increase!