Hundreds of gas emergency workers are set to vote on strike action in a dispute over terms and conditions.
Northern Gas Network (NGN) workers are calling for a series of changes to their working conditions to combat chronic fatigue sweeping across the workforce.
But their demands for a reduced working week, better sick pay, reasonable overtime rates and an end to bullying have been ignored by bosses.
A recent indicative ballot saw 99.5 per cent supporting strike action on a 97 per cent turnout.
The formal strike ballot opens today [Monday 2 September] and will close on the 16 September.
Strike action could begin as early as October, with towns and cities across the north facing major disruption if gas leaks cannot be fixed because of the dispute.
Andrew Aldwinkle, GMB Organiser, said, “These workers do a hard and dangerous job to maintain the safety of the public and to keep the heating on in our homes.
“Many work in extreme conditions and are exhausted from working long and excessive hours.
“Many workers have seen an erosion of their terms and conditions and it’s time to stop and start to make work better by levelling up.
“We want NGN to do the right thing by its workforce and the public – address workers’ concerns and put right the inadequacies in their terms and conditions.
“This is not about pay – it’s about making work better.
“NGN makes millions in profits every year with shareholders reaping massive financial payouts on the backs of working people – it’s time workers got a share of that profit – that would improve their time at work.
“The last thing GMB members want to do is go on strike, but sadly NGN has left them with no choice.”
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