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Hoyer tanker drivers vote against strike action

mslforza — Thu, 10 May 2012 08:33:05 +0000

Tanker drivers working at fuel distribution firm Hoyer have voted against strike action in a re-ballot by the Unite union, with the majority of workers opting instead for action short of a strike.
In a re-ballot of 500 Hoyer drivers, which was called due to a technical error in the original ballot, 57.5% of Unite members on a turnout of 79.5% voted for action short of a strike.
Unite adds that a “significant minority” (39.2%) of drivers also voted for strike action, which it says demonstrates unease over the instability in the industry.
Hoyer, which delivers fuel for Shell, is one of six companies involved in a dispute over minimum standards for tanker drivers, along with BP, DHL, Norbert Dentressangle, Turners (Soham) and Wincanton.
Following eight days of Acas-led negotiations, tanker drivers are now voting in a national consultative ballot, with the results to be announced this Friday (11 May).
Diana Holland of Unite says: “The vote in favour of action short of a strike demonstrates that deep concerns still remain in an increasingly insecure and unstable industry. Tanker drivers face a daily race to the bottom where contracts are chopped and changed. It is in everyone’s interest to bring order to the chaos gripping a vital industry through the introduction of industry wide minimum standards.”
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FTA wants next London Mayor to recognise “essential role” of logistics

mslforza — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:51:53 +0000

The Freight Transport Association has called on the next London Mayor to improve London’s road transport infrastructure, reduce congestion and pollution and look to incentivise the industry during their four-year tenure.
With voting taking place today, the FTA is looking for the next mayor to recognise the “essential role” that the freight industry plays in the success of London’s economy. It says that the capital needs “fast and efficient logistics” to deliver documents and supplies to a 24/7 city – and improvements need to be made to accommodate the predicted population growth in the coming decades.
Following on from the disruption of the Olympics, the FTA is urging the next mayor to continue initiatives such as quiet, night-time deliveries after the Games.
It also wants the successful candidate to support plans for additional Thames crossings in east and south-east London, and improve congestion-cutting measures at the Dartford Crossing. Another initiative is for the mayor to provide a planning framework for the construction of lorry park facilities across the capital.
The FTA wants the next mayor to provide the industry with as much notice as possible for any future stages of the Low Emission Zone and ensure that future air quality initiatives are based on efficiencies available to the industry, rather than being restrictive.
It also wants to see an “urgent review of the London Lorry Control Scheme to incentivise the uptake of quieter vehicles”.
When it comes to road safety, the FTA wants to see increased education for cyclists about how to behave around large vehicles.
Finally, the FTA is asking the next mayor to “work with the industry to reduce the number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued to operators” and ensure adequate kerbside provision for deliveries

Vosa Delays!

mslforza — Wed, 02 May 2012 08:20:38 +0000

Vosa says that unspecified “technical issues” have delayed the introduction of changes to its OCRS compliance grading system.
Originally scheduled to change on 30 April Vosa has warned operators that the “improvements to OCRS cannot be introduced at the end of April as previously planned”.
“We are working on resolving the issues so that we can introduce the OCRS changes as soon as possible.
“When the changes are introduced, we’ll send out notification through Vosa Direct [the government agency’s regular email update system].”
Vosa overhauled the programme’s predictive scoring points system after hauliers and the Freight Transport Association said it created a “misplaced assumption by the wider business community that OCRS is a good way to judge an operator at tender”.

Back in talks

mslforza — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:03:22 +0000

Fuel haulage firms and the Unite union have recommenced talks today in a bid to reach agreement over tanker drivers’ employment terms, following proposals presented to drivers last week were rejected.
Discussions have been underway for more than a fortnight, led by conciliation service Acas, however Unite says its 1,200 members need more guarantees and assurances from haulage bosses about a “commitment to minimum standards”.
Unite has been granted an extension to its original strike mandate until tomorrow (Tuesday 24 April) to enable talks to continue.
Meanwhile, Unite tanker drivers at Hoyer are to be reballoted after concerns that not all of them received ballot papers in the first round of voting. The reballot will take place between 26 April and 8 May.

Tanker drivers reject deal, but say one is within reach

mslforza — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 09:29:13 +0000

Fuel tanker drivers’ representatives have rejected a deal aimed at resolving the dispute over working conditions – but say they are not going on strike.
Diana Holland of Unite said proposals thrashed out with company bosses last week did not go far enough, but urged motorists: “Do not panic.”
Holland said further talks are to be called for “because we feel we are able to reach a solution” without strikes.
Drivers from seven haulage firms are involved in the dispute.
“It is very clear that, at this point, we are not on strike, we have not announced that we are going on strike,” she said.
The announcement came hours after Prime Minister David Cameron and Labour leader Ed Miliband clashed in the House of Commons over the threat of a tanker strike.
Mr Cameron accused Mr Miliband of “complete weakness” for failing to stand up to Unite, while Mr Miliband called on the PM and Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude to apologise for provoking panic-buying at the pumps when the prospect of a strike was first raised.
‘Important progress’
Holland, said the union had asked conciliation service Acas to organise further talks with company bosses and was “determined” to find a way to end the dispute.
She said “important progress” had been made on issues including health and safety, and training. Bosses needed to go further in the areas of maintaining standards, security of employment and subcontracting.
“While there has been some progress, it is clear that our members need more guarantees and assurance from the employers about their commitment to meaningful minimum standards,” said Holland.
“We call on the employers to engage with us so that we can reach a meaningful settlement that brings an end to the uncertainty in the industry.”
Unite says that the industry is too fragmented and many drivers have had their terms of employment repeatedly changed.
‘Complex issues’
The vote against the proposals took place after talks on Wednesday involving 60 representatives of drivers at the seven haulage companies.
Energy and Climate Change Secretary Edward Davey said the government understood “that these are complex issues but urge both parties to work towards a negotiated resolution with the support of Acas”.
Acas, meanwhile, said it was disappointed at the outcome following six days of “intensive talks” last week but said “the challenge now is to see if we can find a way forward”.
Unite has until Friday to accept a deal or announce a strike, after a deadline for calling industrial action was extended.
It would then have to give seven days’ notice of any industrial action.
RMI Petrol, the trade association representing UK independent forecourt retailers, said it had hoped for a resolution, while a spokesman for Hoyer, one of the firms involved, described Unite’s decision as a “serious blow”.
AA president Edmund King said: “Our message to drivers is to continue with their normal buying pattern for fuel.
“There is no shortage of fuel and we don’t want to re-create another self-inflicted shortage.”
Unite represents 2,062 tanker drivers, covering 90% of supplies to forecourts.
There was chaos at petrol stations last month as motorists queued to fill up after reports of panic buying.
The government faced widespread criticism after Mr Maude advised motorists to keep their petrol tanks topped up.

Strike action avoided?

mslforza — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 09:14:32 +0000

Potential strike action could now been avoided following an agreement between fuel haulage firms and the Unite union following a series of talks led by conciliation service Acas.
Haulage bosses from six fuel distribution firms began discussions with Unite on Wednesday 4 April, which continued until Friday 13 April, over tanker drivers’ training, safety and employment conditions.
Acas says it has been liaising between all the parties involved in what it describes as a “challenging” process, but is pleased that a set of proposals has now been reached.
Peter Harwood, Acas chief conciliator, says: “As you would expect, the details of the proposals are confidential until the parties report back to their respective organisations. After that the details may be disclosed by the parties themselves.”
Unite will now present the proposals to its members, which supply fuel to around 90% of UK fuel courts, following a ballot for strike action held on 26 March at which the majority of tanker drivers voted in favour.
Acas confirms that the deadline for any industrial action to take place has been extended to allow the proposals to be considered by all parties.
Firms involved in the talks include Norbert Dentressangle, Wincanton, Turners (Soham), Hoyer, BP and DHL .

Drivers taking Class A drugs because (“their bored”)

mslforza — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:46:36 +0000

Insiders in the UK Road haulage industry claim a culture of class A drug taking is very common amongst it’s drivers.
Truck drivers are resorting to cocaine, speed and ecstasy to help keep themselves awake on long journeys.
As much as 10 % of drivers would fail a drugs test in an average haulage firm.
One lorry driver who was taking to the BBC claimed he regularly saw drivers taking ecstasy, cannabis, speed and cocaine to relieve the boredom of lengthy shifts.
In one incident the insider was told about, a heavily drugged-up driver who ploughed into work-ens vehicles by the side of the motorway.
When questioned by the police the driver was only tested for alcohol and he was not arrested.
The insider reveals that drivers got around rules governing how many hours they were allowed to work by taking two tachograph cards which record driver hours, speed and distance.
To make it look like two drivers were operating a vehicle, when it was in fact one, drivers simply swapped the cards around at the end of a shift.
The drivers testimony is backed-up by a number of drug testing companies contacted by 5 live investigates.

Drivers strike?

mslforza — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 10:37:23 +0000

With the current economic climate the government has been urged to act as peace-broker to prevent a national strike by fuel tanker drivers after hauliers voted for walkouts in a series of ballots, raising the threat of industrial action over Easter.
The Unite trade union held back from declaring strike dates after balloting around 2,000 drivers at seven companies. Five voted for strikes including the contractor for Shell petrol stations, and drivers at DHL backed action short of a strike. Unite members at one business, Suckling, which supplies Jet and Total, rejected industrial action.
A Unite source said the next 24 to 48 hours would be key to determining whether the union pushes ahead with setting dates.
“The next 24 to 48 hours will be key to seeing whether the [haulier] industry and government are serious about sitting down with the union.” Unite must take strike action over the next 28 days or the mandate established by the ballots will expire.
The source added that the government had to get involved in talks, as ministers consider putting the army on standby to replenish fuel stocks.
“This is an infrastructure issue and it is a commodity of national importance,” said the source.
Diana Holland, the assistant general secretary of Unite, said: “These votes send a clear message throughout the industry and should prompt all the major companies to get around the table to establish minimum standards.”
Unite members, who claim industry standards have slumped since firms such as Esso and Shell outsourced petrol deliveries, are seeking common safety and working standards across all contracts.
A statement from Unite said: “Tanker drivers work in an increasingly fragmented and pressurised industry, where corners are being cut on safety and training in a bid to squeeze profits and win contracts. Drivers face growing job insecurity as a result of the contract merry-go-round and a beat-the-clock culture has flourished, with drivers forced to meet ever shorter delivery deadlines.”
The government said it had “robust resilience and contingency plans” to deal with a strike and had already started to put these in place to minimise any disruption to the public.
The energy secretary, Ed Davey, said: “The Unite ballot result is disappointing. The government is strongly of the view that strike action is wrong and unnecessary. The union should be getting round the negotiating table, not planning to disrupt the lives of millions of people across Britain.”
Unite drivers supply fuel to 90% of the UK’s forecourts and the union said a strike could close up to 7,900 petrol stations.
Unite members working for five fuel distribution firms delivering fuel for household names, including, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, BP, Shell and Esso, backed the call for strike action by an average of 69%. Turnouts across the five companies averaged 77.7%
The government has announced that soldiers are being lined up to stand in for the tanker drivers if strikes go ahead, although Unite has pledged to maintain deliveries to the emergency services.
A spokesman for Hoyer, which delivers for Shell, said: “Hoyer has one of the highest health, safety and training standards in the petroleum distribution sector. Pay and conditions for Hoyer drivers are among the best in the industry. Our drivers earn on average £45,000 a year.”

AWR: Day 1 rights for agency workers makes little impact

mslforza — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 15:21:34 +0000

The extension of the day 1 benefits to agency workers – such as parking, company canteens and crèche facilities to name but a few have had very little impact according to new research by Ranstad.
Over 78% of companies who had been surveyed said that they were already providing these benefits to their temporary staff, well before the AWR implementation last October. This statement seems to be backed by two-thirds of agency workers agreeing they had full access.
There seems to be a split on opinion for parity of pay contractors with their permanent counterparts with 53% of temps seeing this as an advantage and 47% do not.
Ranstads research was carried out over 3000 organisations and employees, interestingly enough 63% of temp workers surveyed have actively chosen not to pursue permanent opportunities. More surprisingly 48% of permanent employees plan to consider temping when they next change jobs.

New Depot plans withdrawn

mslforza — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 15:26:40 +0000

The planning application, submitted by Magna Park owners Gazeley UK on behalf of the Stobart Group at the former George Clothing site, would have seen the creation of a depot with parking spaces for 170 heavy goods vehicles as well as office space.
The plans were due to be considered by Harborough District Council’s planning committee on Tuesday evening.
Planning officers had recommended that the scheme be refused as part of the proposed development would be ‘outside the existing confines of Magna Park’ and because Gazeley UK, had not submitted enough information about the potential for increased traffic on the A4303.
As a result of the recommendation, Gazeley UK withdrew its plans shortly before Tuesday’s meeting.
Gwyn Stubbings, planning manager at Gazeley UK, said there were a number of technical issues with the application which needed to be ironed out.
He added: “We withdrew the plans on Monday.
“There were issues with the Environment Agency, who had some concerns about flooding, and with Leicestershire County Council’s highways team, which had requested some more information.
“We will definitely be re-submitting the application at some point once we have dealt with those issues. We don’t think it is anything which can’t be resolved.
“The Stobart Group is very committed to the project and very committed to working at Magna Park – the firm already occupies one unit and has submitted plans for another warehouse and this latest application was in association with their operations there.”
The Stobart Group had recently announced the forthcoming closure of another of its sites near Corby in Northamptonshire, and some of the jobs at the proposed Magna Park site would have been taken by employees moving from there.