Transport for elderly, special needs and vulnerable adults and children in Leeds to care centres, schools and medical appointments faces disruption as staff are set to strike from tomorrow.

Unite, which represents over 100 drivers and passenger assistants, says they are taking the action because Leeds City Council has failed to respond to issues that have been repeatedly raised.

The union says the situation has deteriorated since restructuring 18 months ago, with management poor and training inadequate, leading to incidents where staff and service users have been assaulted.

The workers in the dispute include drivers who take children and older adults with learning difficulties, special needs and complex health problems, to schools, respite placements, medical appointments and community centres. Others provide passenger assistance and office support.

General Secretary of the Unite the Union, Sharon Graham says management at Leeds city council must come up with a solution to the problems facing passenger transport services. Photo credit should read: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

placeholder image — General Secretary of the Unite the Union, Sharon Graham says management at Leeds city council must come up with a solution to the problems facing passenger transport services. Photo credit should read: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

One member of staff, who has worked for the service for over 10 years, says “being bitten is a daily occurrence”, adding: “People are so demoralised. A colleague had someone telling her: ‘You’re a b****, you’re a b****’, all the way to their destination and back.

"Some of the vehicles now have spit guards because people habitually spit, which is pretty disgusting.

"People are not being trained how to deal with it.

"When we had a permanent head of service, training was totally up to date – over the last few years people haven’t even been first aid trained.

"I’d say it was a mix of cost cutting, lack of funding, and the amount of children coming into the system with special needs. The numbers are just increasing all the time. Referrals go up, the money goes down. The number of staff in the office goes down.”

Part of the dispute centres on access to passengers’ risk assessments since the service was digitised, with the union saying team leaders have access, but other drivers and care staff don’t.

A source said there had been 92 physical assaults on staff between January and October last year, adding: "This is not to do with pay. It’s about conditions in the workplace. (Out of a total of 600 employed by the service) there’s over 100 off sick – it is costing millions.”

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "It is completely unacceptable that council cuts are not only putting our hardworking members at risk but also people who rely on this vital service.

"Management must take our members’ concerns seriously and come up with a workable solution to the problems at Leeds Council."

Unite said strikes will also take place on January 16, 23 and 24 and 29 and 30 and February 4 to 6, 11 to 13, 17 to 20 and 24 to 27.

A council spokesperson said they’d been working hard to resolve Unite’s concerns and “continue to work with them to hopefully avoid any industrial action, adding: “The pressure on passenger transport is being experienced by many local authorities, however in Leeds there have been no cuts to frontline services."

The council will try to prioritise school transport for children with special educational needs and disabilities during the strikes, but it is unclear how services would be affected, with the spokesperson adding: "We are encouraging people to make alternative arrangements where they can. We are keeping people updated as best we can in the circumstances.”