Proposed Strike by Petrol Tanker Drivers

Unite have said Petrol Tanker Drivers are going on strike and Francis Maude MP a couple of days ago suggested Drivers top up with Petrol. The resulting chaos was Petrol Stations around the Country have Drivers queuing up all day.

Today, a tragic accident occurred as a direct result. A Woman in York while cooking a meal in her kitchen tried to pour Petrol from the container into
a jug but it appears the vapour from the cooking ignited the Petrol and she was rushed to Hospital with 40% Burns.

Of course Ed Milliband is making a big issue of this, two MP's demanding Maude's resignation.

UNITE saying they had no intention of striking before Easter and Cameron , while offering sympathy to the Woman does not accept liability for Maude
causing chaos at the Pumps.

There a a few observations to be made here.

1. To try to pour Petrol from one container to another in a kitchen suggests a foolhardy action , although I do feel very sorry for the Woman.

2. The Drivers who clogged up Petrol Stations show the Herd instinct , as when Snow is forecast and everyone clears out Supermarkets . did it not
occur to Drivers to find out when the strike would start?

3. Although UNITE have kindly said the drivers will not strike until after Easter, with the state of Britain's economy it's not just Cars, it's Businesses
which will be affected , what possible reason could Petrol Tanker drivers have to hold the Country to Ransom when they will always have a job
while millions won't.????? They must be well paid because their job is dangerous, is it the hours they work which are too onerous?

UNITE is a very militant Union and I do wonder if there is an inlfiltration of Members dedicated to bringing Britain down, I wouldn't be surprised.

I HAVE PUT SOMETHING ON CAN THINGS GET WORSE THREAD.
JUST REMEMBERED HALFORDS SAY SALES OF JERRY CANS HAVE INCREASED 200%
SALES OF PETROL UP 171%
sales of diesel up 120%?
I WAS TOLD THAT CARS ETC WERE QUEUEING UP AT MORRISON'S PETROL STATION,WHICH IS PERHAPS SILLY BECAUSE A STRIKE HASN'T ACTUALLY STARTED YET

Sorry, Badboy, I didn't see your post, you should have put a proper Heading./

On the News tonight Drivers were still queuing up, tempers frayed.....why didn't UNITE tell Maude and Maude make an announcement on T.V.
yesterday?

Sorry Badboy, I have just seen the thread, it was started by Keela , not you.

Well, I had a shock last night when I couldn't get into Tesco's car park because of the long queue waiting for fuel. Today, just as bad: queues at Sainsbury's and all fuel stations I passed on the way to Stratford-upon-Avon. But, in Stratford, no queues anywhere! Amazing! Don't know what was going on there, but I stopped and got some fuel!

In the town where I live there was NO petrol (didn't bother me as I had plenty but a friend nearly ran out) but where I work in the West Midlands there was petrol to spare.

Maude made a monkey of himself this week and should at the very least apologise for being a muppet.

gillyspot wrote:In the town where I live there was NO petrol (didn't bother me as I had plenty but a friend nearly ran out) but where I work in the West Midlands there was petrol to spare.

Maude made a monkey of himself this week and should at the very least apologise for being a muppet.

I drove into a small filling station in Stratford, where there was only one other vehicle.

Yes, I think Maude should offer a public apology. Now that TV has broadcast that the strike won't begin until after Easter perhaps Drivers will not stampede to get Petrol and give the filling stations a chance to fill up.

I knew & anyone with a brain who listens to the news also knew there was a week from call of a strike to the actual strike. Maude though spoke & those who either have no brain or don't listen to the news carefully enough panicked. Sun & Mirror readers hold your hands up - you were only looking at the pictures - look what you've done!

gillyspot wrote:I knew & anyone with a brain who listens to the news also knew there was a week from call of a strike to the actual strike. Maude though spoke & those who either have no brain or don't listen to the news carefully enough panicked. Sun & Mirror readers hold your hands up - you were only looking at the pictures - look what you've done!

I don't drive gillyspot but as I said, why didn't anyone think to find out when the strike would start. On the News tonight they filmed a Garage and
it was like the dodgems ,som,e drivers trying to push in . I can't help thinking of that poor woman,her neighbour said she came running out of the
house screaming' The Fireman said her back, front and legs were badly burned 40% is a big area.

I have suffered 1st degree burns many years ago. I don't recommend it to anyone unless you like hospital food TBH. I can't see that she was responding to Maude's call regarding storage of petrol but since when has UK media actually bothered about accuracy. No need to "decant" in the house if it is from petrol can to car (unless you park your car in the kitchen of course).

gillyspot wrote:I have suffered 1st degree burns many years ago. I don't recommend it to anyone unless you like hospital food TBH. I can't see that she was responding to Maude's call regarding storage of petrol but since when has UK media actually bothered about accuracy. No need to "decant" in the house if it is from petrol can to car (unless you park your car in the kitchen of course).

Icouldn't understand why she chose the Kitchen but maybe there was no Garage, but if that was me I would have gone near the Car to decant
not to have the smell of Petrol in the kitchen. The Press will be full of it tomorrow so you will probably get the full story. You had 1st degree burns
gillyspot, how could you have survived?? How old were you at the time? I can't imagine how many ops you had to have., poor you.

THE ARE SAYING THERE ISN'T ENOUGH TANK DRIVERS TO REFILL THE PETROL STATIONS WITH ALL THIS PANIC BUYING.

Badboy wrote:THE ARE SAYING THERE ISN'T ENOUGH TANK DRIVERS TO REFILL THE PETROL STATIONS WITH ALL THIS PANIC BUYING.

I think it will ease off now people know there will not be a strike before Easter and the week-end means many people will not have to use their cars to
drive to work.

No strike date has been set and talks chaired by a dispute resolution group are aimed at avoiding one
4:10am UK, Wednesday April 04, 2012

Talks aimed at heading off the threat of strikes by fuel tanker drivers are to be held later.
Unite union officials and seven distribution companies will attend a meeting chaired by dispute resolution service Acas at an undisclosed location.

A row involving health and safety concerns has been brewing for more than a year but flared up last week when Unite announced workers in five firms had voted to strike.

The Government advised motorists to top up with fuel, leading to queues at many garages around the UK as people rushed to the pumps, and Cabinet Minister Francis Maude faced a barrage of criticism when he suggested motorists should store fuel in jerrycans.

Eventually drivers were told there was no need to change their normal fuel shopping behaviour and Unite quelled fears of a strike over Easter when it engaged with Acas. It will have to give seven days' notice of any walkout.



Fears of a walkout led to panic buying last week

Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: "For nearly two years, we have been trying to persuade the fuel distribution sector to work with us to defend best practice across the industry.

"It is vital that common, minimum standards on safety, training, wages and pensions are agreed to put a floor of best practice in the sector."

A spokesman for Hoyer, one of the firms involved in the dispute, said: "Given that safety is a mantra for our business, we believe there are some fundamental areas of agreement between ourselves and Unite over the need to harmonise health and safety standards across the industry."

The chairman of the body which represents thousands of independent petrol stations has called for urgent discussions with ministers over Britain's transport fuel "crisis".

In a letter to Energy Secretary Ed Davey, Brian Madderson of the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) predicted that fuel shortages caused by the recent panic buying could continue until at least the Easter weekend and even beyond as petrol stations struggle to restock.

He also said the confidence of independent fuel retailers had been "abruptly shaken" by the Government's "perceived inability" to manage the issue of a potential strike.

TALKS HAVE BROKEN DOWN,JUST HEARD ON 5 NEWS

The thing is l read its because the oil companies are trying to cut down on safety measures and because a petrol tanker can be a dangerous l think the drivers may be right, but l can't find anymore info, has anyone else seen the reasons.?

5:31pm UK, Wednesday April 18, 2012

Leaders of fuel tanker drivers have rejected a deal aimed at averting strikes but want further talks, the Unite union says.
Around 60 representatives of drivers at seven haulage firms discussed proposals drawn up during six days of negotiations with the conciliation service Acas.

Unite Assistant General Secretary Diana Holland told reporters today that progress had been made in the talks, but not enough.

"The overwhelming feeling was the proposals do not go far enough in guaranteeing industry-wide minimum standards, terms, conditions and pensions," she said.

"We remain committed to achieving a negotiated settlement that brings stability and security to a vital industry.

"We call on the employers to engage with us so that we can reach a meaningful settlement that brings an end to the uncertainty in the industry."

Unite urged motorists not to panic buy and stressed that it had not yet decided whether to name any strike dates.

The union only has until Friday to call a strike and will have to give seven days notice of industrial action.

The drivers' representatives are keen to return to Acas, possibly as early as Thursday.

Sky's chief political correspondent Jon Craig said: "As one source put it to me, don't go reaching for your jerry cans just yet because they do want to go back to Acas.

"And they want to do it with some urgency, perhaps as early as tomorrow morning because it the words of Unite sources they do want to do a deal, they do want to avert a dispute."



Last month drivers were panic buying leading to shortages of fuel supplies

A spokesman for Hoyer, one of the firms involved, described Unite's decision as a "serious blow".

"The team from Hoyer, along with other key industry employers, engaged fully and professionally in these talks and remain open to negotiation with a view to achieving a positive resolution to this dispute and avoid the possibility of any damaging strike action by Unite," he said.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Edward Davey said: "We are disappointed that an agreement has yet to be reached.

"We understand that these are complex issues but urge both parties to work towards a negotiated resolution with the support of Acas.

"The Government continues to believe that any strike action would be wrong and unnecessary."

The row is over a series of issues including terms and conditions, pensions and health and safety.

It flared up last month after Unite announced that drivers in five companies had backed strikes.

In response, the Government advised motorists to top up their cars with petrol and to store fuel in jerry cans, leading to panic buying and shortages of supplies.

There were chaotic scenes at garages as long queues built up, leading to criticism of the Government for its handling of the dispute.

A deadline for calling industrial action has been extended to Friday this week, and Unite would have to give seven days notice of any industrial action.

THERE WILL BE ANOTHER MEETING ON MONDAY,EMPLOYERS ARE OFFERING BETTER PENSIONS ETC

A PROBLEM WITH BALLOTING PAPERS MEAN THERE MAY BE A NEW BALLOT.