Major pay awards secured as driver shortage continues

Employers across the road transport industry are continuing to raise wages to make the sector more attractive to drivers; and over recent weeks, the transport union Unite has reported some lucrative pay settlements.

Drivers, shunters and warehousemen at DHL Bellshill reportedly secured wage increases of between 10 and 19 per cent. Drivers will also benefit from paid breaks, a reduced working week and the installation of microwave ovens in overnighting trucks.

Truck drivers at Plymouth City Council, meanwhile, have been upgraded from ‘unskilled’ to ‘semi-skilled’ status in a perhaps belated recognition of the realities of road transport. Unite the union said it had negotiated a job reclassification for the 46 drivers which means a 12.5 per cent pay uplift, worth about £3,000 a year. The new regrading payments were implemented as of last month.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This groundbreaking deal hinged on the reclassification of the drivers. This should be a wake-up call for other local councils in 2022 that they need to look at the nationally agreed local government pay rates to see where there is flexibility to raise wages for this group of key workers.

“There continues to be a nationwide shortage of HGV drivers and council bosses across the country need to take this into account if they want a fully-functioning refuse collection service which relies on these drivers, so the bins are emptied every week. Unite is dedicated to advancing the jobs, pay and conditions of all its HGV driver members.”

In the bus sector, meanwhile, drivers at Stagecoach in South Yorkshire and NCT in Nottingham are celebrating pay awards described by Unite as ‘huge’ and ‘excellent’ respectively.

Other employers, including Coventry City Council, have been facing strike action from emboldened workers dissatisfied with current conditions.