Strikes called off as new deal is offered
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THE RAIL, MARITIME and Transport Union has called off its strike action over pay at rail-freight operator Freightliner while a new deal is discussed with members.
One-day strikes had been planned for Tuesday 12 April and Thursday 14 April but these were suspended, along with the ban on overtime, according to a spokeswoman for Freightliner.
Around 100 drivers mounted a one-day strike on Friday 8 April. The company had warned industrial action could put the future of its road transport division at risk.
Freightliner's original offer was based on a 23% rise in basic rate from £6.09 to £7.50/hr and a final salary pension scheme. But the RMT had maintained that the company was giving with one hand and taking with the other as it had planned to get rid of bonuses worth an average of £18 a week.
The new deal on the table is fundamentally the same "basic structure" which the company had offered originally with a "couple of changes", according to a spokeswoman.
"We are pleased that the two one-day strikes and overtime ban have been suspended as we have always thought that the solution could be reached through discussion," she said.
A spokesman for RMT confirmed that an improved offer had been made.