The London Bus Rank-and-File Committee and the Socialist Equality Party are calling for the reinstatement of London bus driver David O’Sullivan, sacked for upholding workers’ rights to health and safety during a pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than 60 bus workers in the capital.
The death rate among London bus drivers is three times the national average, with the families of those killed demanding answers.
In London, Berlin, Paris, New York, Sao Paulo and India, bus and transport workers are fighting back. O’Sullivan’s sacking is a test case for the rights of key workers everywhere. Join the campaign today!
O’Sullivan, 57, was sacked on February 3, after he sounded the alarm over the spread of COVID-19 infections at Cricklewood bus garage in north west London. The rate of fatalities among London bus drivers is three times the national average, with the families of those killed demanding answers.
Rural carriers, whose salaries have been slashed by tens of thousands under a new evaluation system, were notified earlier this week that they would be invoiced for overpayment supposedly due to inaccurate accounting for route adjustments.
Timothy Cartwell, a Baltimore resident and sanitation worker, died after being pinned between a trash truck and a utility pole in a tight alley earlier this month.
In a clear sign that a sell-out is being prepared behind closed doors, both the Rail, Tram and Bus Union leadership and Labor Premier Chris Minns have said they expect a deal to be stitched up before the end of the year.
The breakdown of talks is an exposure of the supposed “victory” declared by the ILA after shutting down a three day strike by 45,000 workers in October.
Management at Berlin’s BVG local transit company has decided to postpone the reintroduction of front boarding. Drivers must ensure front doors remain closed until they agree it is safe.
The massive “no” vote registered at Park Royal, Stamford Brook and Shepherds Bush speaks to a growing mood of opposition to Unite’s record of collusion.
The refusal of Unite to outline the deal and organise a ballot can only mean that what is being proposed is so toxic that Unite is working frantically on how to sell it to the Go North West drivers and to prevent an angry backlash.
“We are not cattle and will not be sacrificed to protect the profits of the corporations and banks who have made a financial killing during the pandemic,” states the resolution passed by the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee.
