City Bus Drivers Vote To Strike Over Pay

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Chloe AslettYorkshire


Bus services in Doncaster are due to be interrupted after more than 230 chauffeurs voted to take commercial action over pay.


First Bus chauffeurs in the city will go on strike on 28 and 30 March, and 7, 22 and 24 April after turning down a deal which did not provide pay parity with coworkers in Sheffield, the Unite union said.


Unite general secretary Sharon Graham stated the business might manage to pay its motorists in Doncaster the same quantity and was "picking to put profits over people".


Zoe Hands, handling director of First Bus in the area, said the deal of a 7% rise backdated to January 2026 was "amongst the very best chauffeur pay deals this year".


"We are very disappointed and saddened at the choice to go on with strikes," she said, adding that the business "acknowledged the strength of feeling" on the problem.


"We stay committed to working constructively with Union representatives to reach a reasonable and sustainable contract," Hands said.


"Our door stays available to continue conversations and prevent unneeded commercial action."


'Unfair scenario'


The Unite members included in the conflict work at the Doncaster Bus Depot on Leger Way, which runs several paths impacting the city centre.


The dates clash with the Easter holidays and events at Doncaster Racecourse consisting of the opener of the British flat racing season, the William Hill Lincoln Handicap.


Regional officer Christian Ratcliffe said: "Unite members in Doncaster need to not be financially punished for working a few miles down the roadway.


"This unreasonable circumstance can't and Unite is demanding First Bus treats its hard-working drivers fairly."


Unite said FirstGroup was "extremely profitable", with revenues of ₤ 833.6 m for the six months to September 2025, and could afford to fulfill the strikers' needs.


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