Kent Arriva bus strikes comes to an end after a 14% pay increase is agreed

The ongoing bus crisis in Kent is set to come to an end after a 14% pay increase for workers was agreed.

600 members of the Unite Union voted to take action against the bus company Arriva. Talks failed earlier on in the month which led to more strikes. The strikes affected bus services in Gillingham, Tunbridge Wells, Northfleet and Maidstone.

The dispute has been ongoing since the start of September and has continued this past week which caused concern for the local people. Clare Crouch, aged 60 told The Kent Buzz that the vulnerable were most affected.

“The bus I get does serve an older community and I do feel a lot of people, especially the disabled are going to be quite isolated but obviously they can’t walk that far distance”. Clare said

“At the end of the day everyone wants more money, but the bus service should be for the community.” She added.

The bus strikes have certainly caused disruption to the everyday lives of locals in Kent but some people believe that the strikes are necessary for the government to recognise how the cost of living crisis is affecting the public.

“I don’t think you can blame the bus drivers striking really, everything is so expensive at the moment. I think everyone needs a pay rise. The government has got to act” said Bill Buckley.

The agreement for the 14% pay increase was labelled as “tremendous achievement” by Unite general secretary Shanon Graham.

“This pay victory at Arriva Kent is a further example of how Unite’s complete focus on enhancing the jobs, pay and conditions of its members is paying financial dividends for workers.” She added.

Arriva bus company will be relieved that the dispute is now resolved following the backlash from the local people. The service expected to return to normality. Arriva released the following statement on the matter.

“We are pleased to confirm our pay offer has been accepted by Unite members, this means no further industrial action across the region and Arriva services will continue to operate as normal across Tunbridge Wells, Gillingham, Maidstone and Northfleet.”