Transport and distribution specialist Eddie Stobart is putting two Iveco ECOSTRALIS tractor units to the ultimate test within its extensive transport operation.

Eddie Stobart and the Unite union could be heading to arbitration service Acas to end the row over drivers’ jobs at Tesco’s Doncaster DC.

The move comes after a 72-hour walkout last week by 180 Unite driver members facing redundancy at the DC. This included a demo outside a Tesco store in Westminster.

Eddie Stobart took over the transport function at Tesco’s DC in August and in September said it wanted to remove it and use its nationwide network to meet delivery requirements.

Attempts to settle the dispute have become increasingly acrimonious, with both sides accusing the other of not engaging fully with the process.

Unite has now approached Acas to resolve the dispute.

Eddie Stobart MD Dave Pickering said: “Both parties want a resolution and we are in consultation to achieve this. One option is to engage with Acas but it’s still only an option that’s being considered.”

After the most recent strike, Pickering wrote to the affected drivers urging them to get their union representatives back around the negotiating table.

"The industrial action that has taken place so far has achieved nothing, other than to take money out of the pockets of drivers and put jobs and financial packages in jeopardy," Pickering wrote in the letter sent on 2 November.

Topics