South Yorkshire Assenting Hauliers
10/6/2010
For many years now, the minimum rates and terms and conditions for South Yorkshire have been negotiated and agreed annually between the URTU, Unite the Union, and members of the group of employers know as the ‘Assenting Hauliers’.
This forum has worked well in the past, with general agreements being reached by the parties to set the minimum rates and conditions within the industry for South Yorkshire. Our members, employed within the ‘Assenting Hauliers’ have benefited from the negotiations year on year.
This year has been generally difficult within our industry, and the employers in the group of ‘Assenting Hauliers’ are finding it even more so as they watch their colleagues associated with the group go out of business.
The group actually wanted to disband this forum but have been persuaded by the unions to suspend the forum for a period of two years instead to see if the economic situation changes.
This means that they are not willing to make an offer of a collective wage raise for 2010. From 2011, companies will have to be approached on an individual basis and the ‘Assenting Group’ forum will be reconvened in 2012.
This situation is by no means ideal but, we believe that this was the best way forward.
Dave Swan
Regional Officer (Region 7)
