Arriva 'deeply disappointed' as Unite the Union confirms indefinite strike action at five bus depots in Yorkshire from June 6

The strike will involve bus drivers and engineers based at depots in Castleford, Dewsbury, Heckmondwike, Selby and Wakefield, following a 96 per cent vote in favour of industrial action by the Unite union after the company’s offer of a 4.1 per cent pay increase, which has been described as "pitiful".

During this industrial action there will be no planned Arriva bus services operating within the Yorkshire region.

A spokesperson for Arriva UK Bus said: "We are deeply disappointed that we were unable to reach an agreement with Union representatives and Unite have confirmed they plan to hold a strike for an indefinite period across services in Yorkshire from 2am on Monday, June 6.

"Such unjustified strike action will have an extremely negative impact on communities across the region, particularly at this crucial time of year for students undertaking GCSE exams.

"We put forward an improved and generous pay offer, which we were led to believe met Unite’s ambitions. Yet we now find the goal posts have been moved with demands for further increases.

"The mandate for strikes arose from a ballot of Unite members on a previous pay offer, meaning strikes have been announced without the improved proposal being put to employees by the union.

"Arriva is calling on Unite to abandon their plans for this damaging and counter-productive strike and to ballot their members on the new offer."

All Arriva pre-paid tickets will be accepted on First Bus and Transdev services during strike days. Details of these services can be found at https://wymetro.com