The latest proposal was rejected on a 2 to 1 majority by the drivers despite the union negotiators endorsing the proposal. More talks but at this stage the S word is not being openly mentioned by any of the parties. More drama to come.
The second offer from NZBUS was rejected by the drivers and now the drivers are putting 2 options to nzbus that set out what they will accept. There are to be no strikes while these options are discussed with nzbus. But the two parties are still quite far apart.
This Friday drivers will vote on a revised offer from NZBUS. This offer now includes amounts to effectively buy out existing conditions about shift patterns etc. It may get more drivers that want to leave in the next 6-12 months to vote for it but the fundemental reasons the drivers voted no to the original offer remain.
Hi
I drove buses for a few years when Go Wellington was the local brand (and the then owner was Infratil). I have been retired a few years and besides setting up this give a little page I often write to the GWRC (Metlink) with how I see things and what solutions might work for different problems.
So if you are interested in some detail about the numbers behind the dispute below is a link to the core parts of an email I sent Metlink this evening. Happy reading.
TL;DR - the GWRC (metlink) needs to be involved more than it is if any real change is to happen.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SEkSEvKCnlQMsvWN7ExK6UgxX82V7atFsp1WS4KfVqw/edit?usp=sharing
1. Many thanks to all you donors especially the two people who gave the total a big nudge.
2. besides this page which is to raise money there is also a page to show your support by way of a signature campaign. The link is here and has over 20,000 people on it.
https://www.together.org.nz/thankyou-driver
3. for clarity a strike and a lockout are to be treated the same for driver eligibility to claim from the funding pool.
4. there are about 230 drivers who are not getting any money when on strike/locked out .
5. you may have seen various names/terms used in the media.
Here is what they mean :
WCT is the company that employs the Wellington drivers and Cityline the Eastbourne drivers. Both companies are 100% owner by NZBUS who in turn is 100% owned By Next Capital. In short they are all Next Capital.
Previous owners of NZBUS were Infratil and much earlier Stagecoach was the owner/operator.
The current contracts for the routes Next Capital have expire in about 2029.
Drivers announced a one day strike tomorrow (Friday) and the company then locked them out from Saturday.
Unfortunately Stuff will not put a link to this give a little page when they do an article about the strike. I have also put the link on Neighbourly to supposedly 30,000 Wellingtonians but have had very little response.
I will continue to see if the page can get more exposure as I think many people might donate if they knew there was a place to send it to.
The nzbus drivers that are also all Tramways members voted to strike and they could begin striking as earlier as this Monday. It seems they may be single day strikes at short (24 hour?) notice. It looks like just over 200 drivers will be involved and it will effect east- west type routes eg eastern suburbs to town and karori to town
It is not known if other drivers will join them from other operators.
This week many drivers will attend a stop work meeting. What they decide at that meeting is likely to make it clearer as to whether or not strike action is soon ie next couple of months. The reactions of employers and the GWRC to what the drivers decide will also influence how any strike plays out.
