Ritchies bus drivers in Dunedin are striking at the weekend over what they say are delays and breakdowns in bargaining and the company’s refusal to meaningfully improve wages. The drivers will strike from 7am on Saturday until 7am on Sunday, First Union said in a statement. The drivers would also be holding a picket at the Octagon on Saturday from 10am to midday with placards and a petition for Dunedin residents to sign. $19 an hour is still a low hourly rate for bus drivers and well below the Living Wage. "The strike and picnic picket tomorrow is to send a clear message to Ritchies and the public that these Dunedin bus drivers will not put up with this ill-treatment any longer.”A Ritchies spokesperson said it was "business as usual" and services would be running as normal tomorrow.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 01, 2019 06:11 UTC