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Tanker drivers strike again at Wincanton in Stockton Tanker drivers strike suspended at Wincanton
(about 9 hours later)
Fuel tanker drivers in Stockton are embarking on a seven-day strike in a dispute over pay and conditions. A planned strike by fuel tanker drivers on Teesside and in North Lincolnshire has been suspended to allow new talks to go ahead.
Members of the Unite union who work for the fuel haulage company Wincanton were due to walk out at 05:00 GMT, two days after the end of their previous action. Members of the Unite union who work for the fuel haulage company Wincanton were due to walk out at 05:00 GMT in a dispute over pay and conditions.
Picket lines are planned at a number of sites, including Stockton and Immingham, which the union claimed would hit deliveries to Jet garages. However, in a last-minute move the seven-day action was postponed for 24-hours to allow talks to take place.
Wincanton said the strike was threatening its business relations. Pickets at sites including Stockton and South Killingholme have stood down.
However, the union said Wincanton could afford to pay "decent pay and pensions". The union claimed the action, which was planned to last for seven days, would hit deliveries to Jet garages.
Its national officer, Matt Draper, said Wincanton and its customer ConocoPhillips generated "huge profits". Representatives of the company and the union will meet later.
'Long haul' Strike suspended
He added: "Their greed is destabilising the supply of a vital national resource. Wincanton said in a statement: "We can confirm that strike action has been suspended pending the outcome of discussions taking place today between Wincanton and Unite."
"The ongoing attack on these highly skilled drivers has left the union with no option but to step up the action for seven more days. Matt Draper, Unite national officer, said: "Unite hopes that today will see a resolution to this dispute. Wincanton now has an opportunity to get its priorities right."
"The Wincanton drivers are in it for the long haul so our suggestion to ConocoPhillips and Wincanton is get your priorities right." An earlier strike by drivers, following a ballot in January, had only recently ended.
In a statement Wincanton said it was unable to negotiate longer contacts with ConocoPhillips while strike action was "threatening relationships with their forecourt partners and their livelihoods". Wincanton had been accused of wanting to "annihilate" the pay and conditions of drivers.
The company said: "While our drivers continue with this unnecessary strike, they are not getting paid and they are jeopardising our chances of extending the contract. But in a statement the company said its drivers were "among the best rewarded in the UK".
"At the same time, the disruption caused by the strike to the independent forecourt traders is putting their businesses at risk and leaves them with no other option than to seek alternative transport for their fuel supplies. "There was never any question that Wincanton would implement new terms and conditions without mutual agreement," it said in a statement.
"We remain committed to an open dialogue with Unite and to continuing discussions with our employees."