Further to previous updates and most recently issued TB 167/2023 and 187/2023 you will be aware that the CWU have consistently been raising the issue of the 3 months’ notice for the withdrawal of the TRB which has not been applied consistently.
The CWU has been representing this issue as the response from the company does not provide required compensation for 3 months’ notice for all. Whilst we are pleased that a review has taken place this does not provide an acceptable outcome.
This matter was escalated under the ‘failure to agree’ process and as a consequence of our representations GXO have now responded with the below which is being implemented in November salaries and those affected are receiving individual letters.
The CWU believe that notice should apply for ALL drivers and at the full amount of bonus x 3 months, therefore, we are still in dispute and are due to meet with GXO again in person on 4th December to pursue further representations.
The position from GXO as advised to us is as follows:
Background
The 2023 pay review for drivers resulted in the removal of the non-contractual, Transport Retention Bonus (TRB), and where needed, included into individual base salaries to achieve a consistent pay rate for Van Drivers, Class 1 and Class 2 Drivers across the BT GXO contract.
This resulted in the below pay rates from 1st April 2023:
Position | Post April 2023 Review | OTB Post 2014 |
Van Driver pre 2014 | £27,040.00 | |
Van Driver post 2014 | £24,581.86 | £2,458.19 |
Class 2 Driver pre 2014 | £35,178.00 | |
Class 2 Driver post 2014 | £31,980.00 | £3,198.00 |
Class 1 Driver pre 2014 | £37,180.00 | |
Class 1 Driver post 2014 | £33,800.00 | £3,380.00 |
Throughout the negotiation process, the above deal was balloted on and processed with GXO payroll in June. All base salaries, where increases were applied, were backdated to April, resulting in individual colleagues receiving the difference between pre-April and post-April base salaries in their June pay. The TRB was also removed at this stage. Colleagues saw two deductions of full TRB for the months of April 2023 and May 2023.
Following further discussions, GXO identified that this would have negatively impacted a few colleagues for the month of June 2023 and are writing to those individuals who are identified as impacted over the next few days. As a goodwill gesture, those identified individuals will receive a one-off payment in your November 2023 pay. This payment is made up of the following calculation.
Calculation.
TRB monthly value minus the monthly base salary increase then multiplied by 3.
Example
A colleague pre-April has a base salary of £27,275.04 per annum. Post April, this is increased to £31,980 per annum. The increase, monthly is £392. As per the calculation above:
£433.33 – £392 = £41
£41 multiplied by 3 = £124 total as a one-off payment to be applied in November 2023 pay. As outlined the CWU do not accept that the calculation or application accurately reflects what was discussed between us. We are meeting with the company under the ‘Failure to Agree’ process and a further update will be issued to members following that.
Recognition deal at GXO.
A comprehensive new recognition agreement has been finalised with logistics giant GXO covering all of the former Supply Chain warehousing and transport operations that were outsourced by BT in May.
Crucially, the agreement enables the union to begin canvassing potential new members at the Midway Distribution Centre in Milton Keynes, where the union has never previously been recognised for collective bargaining purposes. That site is now set to be the centrepiece of GXO’s consumer operations under plans which will also see significant new investment in Northallerton.
Some of the 20 + new members the branch signed up on Tuesday at the GXO EE site at Milton Keynes.


The CWU is shortly to progress with meeting employees at Midway, working together with management to extend recognition in the previously unrecognised area.
Apart from reaffirming the CWU’s right to collectively bargain on behalf of nearly 300 ex- Supply Chain staff impacted by the TUPE transfer, the formal signing of a new and expanded recognition agreement cements a highly constructive dialogue that has been taking place between the union and management on multiples issues since May 2022.
Positive talks are also underway on a grading review for HGV and van drivers which was technically initiated by Supply Chain in the face of acute pandemic and Brexit-related driver shortages, but not seriously started before the shock outsourcing announcement.
The CWU and GXO are together working towards the joint desire to have properly benchmarked pay rates – negating the need for a range of ongoing “temporary allowances” that Supply Chain rushed through in September 2021 to stem what was becoming a full-blown exodus of desperately needed drivers.
National officer for GXO, Tracey Fussey explains : “While it’s fair to say that the CWU initially had deep concerns about an outsourcing that we still believe was unnecessary and ill-considered by BT, our relationship with GXO has got off to an excellent start. That is something we’re obviously looking to build on for the benefit of all our members in the company.”