Arriva North West bus staff to take part in nine December strikes

Arriva operates bus services across the North West of England

Arriva North West bus drivers and staff are to take further strike action on nine days in December in a continuing dispute over pay.

Members of the Unite and GMB unions will walk out on 4, 7, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22 and 23 December, affecting bus services throughout the region.

A Unite spokesman said a fresh pay offer from Arriva was "an absolute insult" and had been rejected.

Arriva said it was "keen" to meet the unions and "resolve the pay dispute".

Unite wants an "equitable pay award" across all depots and for Arriva to tackle wage inequalities of up to £1.73 an hour between bases, as members were struggling generally with the rising cost of living, the union spokesman said.

'Sustainable'

Unite regional officer John Boughton said Arriva's latest pay offer had been "overwhelmingly rejected".

"The company knows what would settle this dispute, and it's not a king's ransom," he said.

"This company makes huge profits. All our members want is a fair share."

The new strike dates follow previous industrial action in October and November

Arriva's regional managing director Phil Stone said the company were "as ever, keen to meet with the Unite and GMB to resolve the pay dispute" and had requested a meeting on Thursday.

"As we have said before, any pay offer has to be sustainable for the business going forward and we believe we have put forward a fair pay deal for our drivers," he said.

The fresh strike dates follow similar industrial action in October and November and will be preceded by previously announced walk-outs on 20 and 27 November.

Arriva North West run services in Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Lancashire and Cheshire.