(14 Sep 2023, 8:18 pm)R852 PRG wrote Historically, conditions were not standardised and varied on a depot-to-depot basis. In each depot's establishment, there are rotas for drivers who are on paid meal breaks and those on unpaid meal breaks; in most depots, the rotas for unpaid meal breaks are larger than those for paid meal breaks, although this has been facilitated through the departure of older drivers on historic conditions and the influx of newer drivers on newer conditions.
As an example, at Chester, there was one large unpaid breaks rota, a paid breaks rota - which got progressively smaller as old hands left - and a 4 day rota with unpaid breaks only. At Gateshead, by comparison, there are paid and unpaid breaks for both the Green Rota (historically Sunderland Road routes in and around eastern Gateshead, with changeovers at Gateshead Metro) and the Red Rota (predominantly ex-Winlaton stuff, with the exception of the 49s etc; driver changeovers at the Metrocentre). Both the Green and Red Rotas have subsidiary 4 day rotas, with each having paid and unpaid lines in accordance with drivers' conditions.
Nowadays, most drivers across the company are on standardised terms and conditions with unpaid meal breaks, however, some - mostly longer serving drivers - are on paid meal breaks. With time, paid meal breaks have become the minority in most depots. Deptford is an exception to this rule, with a higher proportion of drivers having paid meal breaks.
Ah well that makes sense. There has been many a time that buses from park lane leave late because the drivers are smoking or havent came down from their breaks yet.... Must be why they are less enthused to be back to driving as opposed to needing to earn a living in other depots...