Pay Parity, Driver Refueller/Refueller Operatives, Bounds Green and Doncaster Depots - Hitachi Rail

Circular No IR/280/25

 

To All Branches, Regional Offices & Regional Councils

 

Our Ref: BR4/10/2

30^th July 2025

 

Dear Colleagues 

 

Pay Parity, Driver Refueller/Refueller Operatives, Bounds Green and Doncaster Depots - Hitachi Rail

 

Discussions have been ongoing with Hitachi Rail arising from longstanding grievances regarding inconsistent pay applied to Driver Refueller and Refueller Operative members. Those based out of the Doncaster and London Bounds Green Maintenance Depots were in receipt of inferior pay compared to those in comparable roles in other locations, which is unacceptable to this union.

 

Following representations made by the union’s negotiating team under the Avoidance of Disputes procedure, the company have made the following offer:

 

• Driver Refuellers based at Doncaster and Refuelling Operatives based at Bounds Green will be paid the same basic salary as those employees based at London North Pole.
• This salary increase will be backdated to April 2025 and will be paid as soon as possible

 

The National Executive Committee has considered the views of the Regional Organiser and our Representatives and has noted that this offer is welcome but the offer has not been backdated to when the original grievances were submitted. Consequently, the National Executive Committee has instructed me to carry out an e-referendum of our affected members on these proposals. Voting instructions have been despatched and the referendum closes on Thursday 31^st July 2025.

 

I would be grateful if you could bring this circular to the attention of your members. 

 

Yours sincerely

 

Eddie Dempsey

General Secretary