City Bus Drivers Vote To Strike Over Pay

7 days ago
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Chloe AslettYorkshire


Bus services in Doncaster are because of be disrupted after more than 230 drivers voted to take industrial action over pay.


First Bus chauffeurs in the city will go on strike on 28 and 30 March, and 7, 22 and 24 April after declining a deal which did not offer them pay parity with colleagues in Sheffield, the Unite union stated.


Unite basic secretary Sharon Graham stated the company might manage to pay its chauffeurs in Doncaster the same amount and was "selecting to put earnings over people".


Zoe Hands, managing director of First Bus in the area, stated the deal of a 7% increase backdated to January 2026 was "amongst the very best driver pay deals this year".


"We are very dissatisfied and saddened at the choice to go ahead with strikes," she stated, including that the company "recognised the strength of sensation" on the issue.


"We stay committed to working constructively with Union representatives to reach a fair and sustainable agreement," Hands said.


"Our door stays open to continue conversations and avoid unneeded commercial action."


'Unfair circumstance'


The Unite members associated with the dispute work at the Doncaster Bus Depot on Leger Way, which operates numerous paths affecting the city centre.


The dates clash with the Easter vacations and occasions at Doncaster Racecourse including the opener of the British flat racing season, the William Hill Lincoln Handicap.


Regional officer Christian Ratcliffe said: "Unite members in Doncaster must not be economically penalised for working a few miles down the roadway.


"This unreasonable situation can't continue and Unite is requiring First Bus treats its fairly."


Unite stated FirstGroup was "highly rewarding", with earnings of ₤ 833.6 m for the 6 months to September 2025, and might afford to satisfy the strikers' needs.


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