So, who's striking today? Which Side are You On

The professional drivers negotiate a proper and equatable fair wage for their services. The company can’t provide the service that they are mandated to provide, because of lack of revenues on selected routes !! FG want a bus in every village every hour of every day.
But it’s all the professional drivers fault, go have a think about what you’re saying buddy.

It isn’t just the drivers fault. “Management” in the public and semi sector is what I consider to be a non sequitur given the control of Unions over work practices.

Unless someone pays for the wage, than it doesn’t happen. Find, go ahead and negotiate inflated wages on the PSO routes, but you will die on the competitive routes.

They don’t need to stop buying buses. They should reconsider the strategy of gold plating their fleet on the specific line of business where they’re losing most money.

http://m.independent.ie/videos/irish-news/are-these-the-poshest-buses-in-ireland-bus-eireann-unveils-460k-buses-30966658.html

And when BE fails in competition with their shit buses versus Go Bus and Air Coach with wifi, a lack of investment will be the excuse.

Always an excuse. There is no need for them on those routes.

Either you think their cost base is too high or you don’t. If they are in dire need to cut costs then a simultaneous large good plated capital investment programme is a ridiculous strategy and is directly related to their crap financial performance. Ignoring that doesn’t make it untrue.

So it’s not the professional drivers fault ?

I don’t believe a govt semi-state should be running a commercial bus service when there are plenty of (clearly better managed and more efficient) alternatives. This would seem to be further proof of that fact.

Public service routes are different but again I’m unclear why we need a semi-state to do it.

@tallback. Have you any idea about employment conditions for these “efficient and better managed” entities ?

Also. I strongly agree that a semi state shouldn’t be running a commercial service. Good point. It’s a service they provide.

That’s capital investment.

23 new buses at 460k is a wowsers tabloid headline but this is a 303m turnover company. That is less than 4% of turnover. That is below average capital investment for any transportion company.

Imagine ones argument coming down to moaning about spending money on buses with wifi against private competitors doing the same.

Pearse Street has a lot to answer for with some of them they churn out.

I don’t know beyond what was quoted about Aircoach earlier.

I would assume that it’s lawful and that the employees in case signed up for it freely? I would presume that the wage has settled at about the level where companies can get trained responsible staff who can fulfill the job - that’s how wages are arrived at in most industries.

Am I right? Do you know what it is?

I vaguely remember something in the accounts about capital grants too?

I do know that it’s on the threshold for FIS if the employee has 2+ children. How do you feel about the state subsiding a working man ? A man that works a full week, right or wrong ?

Every company needs to invest in its assets. I don’t have a problem with BE doing so so long as they think they will be a viable company.

The Rockos of this world prefer to cut cap ex so that we can continue to pay bloated salaries for current expenditure. I have posted the spending graph before but Ireland basically decided to not capital spend for years in order to protect wages and entitlements.

The people who pay are the next generation.

Should they work for nothing so ?
I could imagine the laugh. Sorry gardai. We can’t pay salary this month. We gotta get x 25 new patrol cars.
What world do you live in? I’d say IBEC have you fully converted now.

What’s your proposal. Should the other bus companies be subsidised too? Should the workers in my company be subsidised as well - plenty on less than the quoted Air Coach figure. How does that work?

You’re living in a cossetted sheltered sector with no concept that this is the way the real world works.

Your solution is for those private sector bus drivers that you cry crocodile tears for to have more of their taxes diverted to you and your select few on the inside.

Where did I say they should work for nothing?

Once again, emotive argument versus facts and logic.

You said that expenditure shioild be capital and not on ‘bloated wages’. That’s exactly where you said money should go.

And again.

When Bus Eireann can’t attract customers because they have no wifi versus their competitors, your excuse will be “investment” in cap ex.

The cap ex quoted above is below the standard rate for a transport company, so what is your issue? Is it a service for the users or is it a money dump for a segment of society?

So I guess you think 450K for a new bus represents good value when private operators are buying the exact same vehicles for 70K less ?

Where did you get that information. Can you publish the facts ?