Workers at a service providing vital transportation to elderly and vulnerable people across the capital are going out on strike tomorrow (May 1) in an ongoing row about new work schedules.

The 120 Dial-a-Ride workers who provide special needs transport for elderly people, the vulnerable and those with disabilities, on behalf of Transport for London (Tfl), operate from depots in Woodford Green in Redbridge and Orpington in Bromley.

According to Unite, Dial-a-Ride’s management plans to remove 10 rest days a year and impose “impossible” new rosters which workers say is “turning them into robots”.

Following the 24 hour strike tomorrow there will be a further 24 hour stoppage this Thursday (May 3). Both strikes will begin at 00.01am.

Unite regional officer Hugh Roberts said: “Unite has always believed that this dispute could have been resolved by negotiation but those hopes have been scuppered by a high handed management that has been unable or unwilling to listen to reason and to amend the attacks on our members’ terms and conditions.”

But James Mead, General Manager Dial-a-Ride, refuted this, saying: “We are working to resolve the rostering issues raised by Unite and urge them to call off this unnecessary strike action.

“We expect our regular dial-a-ride passengers to be unaffected by the industrial action. We are also doing all we can to make sure people who book through our next day and same day booking process can continue to use our service.”

TfL also claims the new rostering system has already been put in place at seven other depots across London, where it had been implemented with no problems.