TALKS aimed at resolving the bitter fuel tanker drivers’ pay dispute were adjourned last night as hundreds of workers continued with a four day stoppage.
Leaders of the Unite union and managers from two haul-age companies which deliver petrol and diesel to Shell garages met for more than three hours at a secret location in a bid to break the deadlock dispute.
A statement from Unite and the two firms, Hoyer and Suckling, said of yesterday’s talks: “The meeting was helpful and both sides have agreed to adjourn to reflect on today’s discussions.”
The two sides will meet again today shortly after the walk-out by over 600 drivers ends at 6am. Fewer garages than expected had run out of fuel because of the strike, but there was a mixed picture in Merseyside, with some petrol stations running out comp- letely and others only having a small amount of fuel left.
Research for the Depart-ment for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform said more sites had restocked since the weekend, so fewer had no fuel for sale. The number of garages running out was estimated to be 7% of the 8,900 sites across the UK.
AA president Edmund King said: “Some motorists are struggling to find fuel. We would like to see clearer sign-ing as it is not always clear that pumps have run dry and motorists are wasting fuel by entering the forecourts.”
The union has warned of another four-day strike from Friday, unless the pay dispute is resolved.
Drivers walked out at 6am last Friday but informal con-tact was maintained between the two sides, leading to yes-terday’s formal negotiations.
The two sides have clashed over the drivers’ pay, with the companies insisting they had offered a 13% rise, to take average earnings to around £41,500 by the end of the year.
The union said the drivers were on a basic rate of £31,800 and were claiming a rise to increase that to £36,000. Unite has criticised Shell for being “greedy” by not increasing payments to haulage firms involved despite huge profits.
Picketing went on yester-day at 14 refineries, including Stanlow, Ellesmere Port.
Shell said 284 of its 582 garages had suffered short-tages because of the strike and added: “We thank our customers for their continued patience.”
OPINION: PAGE 10
alanweston
