The Union has consistently said that the dispute is not about pay, which sounds to me like it's probably greedy employers trying to squeeze as much as possible from existing employees instead of employing more drivers.You cannot compromise safety in areas like fuel transportation .
My Own Union is currently in dispute with our employer as they are trying to get us to drive Underground Trains for longer periods during the Olympics. They are trying to increase our maximum shifts from 8hrs 30 mins to 9hrs 30 mins for the duration of both Olympic Games. They have offered some money as an inducement to agree this temporary change to existing agreements but money is not everything. You do feel tired after spending that time in underground tunnels so to add an extra hour to the day is just dangerous. They have known the Olympics has been coming for years so why not employ some extra drivers to fill any gaps. Incidentally they have offered no amnesty to drivers should they be involved in a safety related incident during this time. So if you have a SPAD (pass a red signal) in your ninth hour it's still down to you.
So in my view although the extra money would be nice when you balance it against the risks involved I'd rather not .
