13th January, 2015
Thousands of London bus drivers held a one-day strike on Tuesday over pay and conditions, causing overcrowding on remaining services, trains and the underground system.
Members of the Unite union, which represents more than 27,000 bus workers, are calling for a single wage between different operators, similar to the one used for underground drivers.
At the moment, more than 80 different pay rates exist across the city, leading to differences in hourly rates, the union said.
Transport for London (TfL) warned that services would not get back to normal until Wednesday.
“London’s bus operators have raked in millions in profits while driving down pay and refusing to tackle pay inequality on the capital’s buses,” said Wayne King, London regional officer for Unite.
“As bus company directors enjoy lottery-style salaries, bus drivers doing the same job on the same route are being pitted against one another on different rates of pay,” he added.
Crowds of commuters were seen outside transport hubs like Victoria, as they strained to absorb some of the 6.5 million bus journeys made in London each day.
London Mayor Boris Johnson criticised the action and defended the differential pay rates.
“It is very, very sensible to have different pay rates across London. There are different working environments, different labour markets across the city,” he told BBC radio.