First Bus workers strike over pay

Drivers are seeking £8-an-hour in the dispute

Bus travel in the east of Scotland has been disrupted by a one-day strike by staff working for First Bus.

More than 300 bus services in Stirling, Falkirk, Edinburgh and the Lothians were cancelled.

About 600 workers are involved in the dispute over pay and conditions. A further 24-hour strike will be held next week.

The row comes weeks after drivers at Lothian Buses held walk-outs. Workers eventually agreed a £9-an-hour deal.

A First spokeswoman said the firm was not operating any services within Edinburgh and the Lothians, apart from going to the Borders area.

Thousands affected

No services were running in Central Scotland, apart from the X37 Falkirk to Glasgow route and the X39 Stirling to Glasgow service, operated by First Glasgow.

About 100,000 passengers are thought to be affected by the action.

The Transport and General Workers Union (T&G) said its members at First were seeking a pay rise from the current rate of £7.40-an-hour to £8.

Sandy Smart, regional industrial organiser for T&G in Central Scotland, said an earlier offer was "derisory" and would have have led to drivers "selling everything they've got" in terms of working conditions, in order to achieve £8 an hour.

"Our guys quite clearly said there's no way that that's acceptable. We've precious little terms and conditions left as it is," he added.

Mr Smart said drivers were "buoyant" and in good humour.

We remain available to continue the negotiations and are willing to take the deal to independent arbitration Juliette Turner First Bus

"It's going very well and morale is high.

"We have had 100% support in every depot right across the strike area. There is nobody driving a bus. There is nobody turning up to work.

"Now we're just at the stage of waiting to see if the company is prepared to come back with a revised offer."

The decision to strike came after the results of a ballot were revealed on Monday night, with members "overwhelmingly" backing action by 539 votes to 49.

Another 24-hour strike will be held on Tuesday September 13 unless the company comes back with revised offer, the union said.

Juliette Turner, operations director of First Scotland East, said the company had to balance any pay offer with the desire of our customers to keep fares down.

She said: "Our recent offer represented a 13.8% increase over two years for drivers in our central depots and an 11.5% increase for our drivers in our east depots.

"We remain available to continue the negotiations and are willing to take the deal to independent arbitration."