Strong support for DVLA strike, says union

Mar 1 2008 by Robin Turner, Western Mail

Union officials at the DVLA in Swansea said most staff supported yesterday’s one-day strike over pay.

But management at the licensing centre in Morriston claimed fewer than one in five workers were in favour of industrial action.

An agency spokesman said yesterday, “We are disappointed the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has chosen to take strike action especially as less than 18% of their membership voted for this action.”

The spokesman added the agency would be doing everything possible to minimise the effect of yesterday’s strike. Five thousand driving tests UK-wide were called off because of the action.

The union claims there is a widening pay gap between the mainly female staff at the Morriston centre and predominantly male workers at related transport agencies. The PCS said the strike was in response to a series of below inflation pay offers and the widening pay gap.

PCS member Sarah Mayo said there was “strong support” for the strike and many of those crossing the picket line in Swansea were contractors working for privatised sectors such as IT and catering.

A DVLA spokesman said, “Maintaining a service to customers is a priority for the agency and we have established contingency plans to ensure disruption to customer service is minimised.”