Watch: Striking Go Carz taxi drivers in protest convoy through Telford

A group of Go Carz drivers say they have reluctantly decided to strike after not being able to come to an agreement with management.

Up to 86 drivers took part in the action this morning while about 130 joined a second protest this afternoon.

The first group went on strike at 7.30am, driving around Telford Shopping Centre until 9.30am.

More drivers gathered in the town again this afternoon, setting off around the town centre ring road from 4.20pm.

Shropshire Star reporter Mat Growcott tweeted:

A statement released by the striking drivers said: "For a lot of drivers, working at GoCarz has become a nightmare. Paying a weekly rent in excess of £100, carrying out school contracts which pay less than the minimum wage, call centre staff booking jobs with incorrect prices/times/destinations, favoritism within the workforce and inequality.

"Meetings with management have not progressed the way we hoped they would and now all dialogue has come to a halt with the driver representatives not being given any kind of feedback. Managers/owners/directors do not seem to care when a threat of strike action was mentioned as they did not believe we would follow it through. We simply ask for better treatment of all drivers and show us a little respect.

"The introduction of a new system has led to up to 50 drivers leaving GoCarz to work for our main competitor, Diamond. Customers are suffering too with incorrect prices being quoted, late taxis and generally a poor service.

"In some cases drivers have worked for this firm for over a decade yet they are still not given their due respect.

"It's a shame that we have to take this measure to get our voices heard. We hope that management listen to our concerns and make changes which will be beneficial for both the drivers and customers. If there is not a sufficient amount of change soon, a lot of drivers will be leaving to join Diamond Taxis."

Managers at Go Carz today insisted no jobs had been cancelled due to this morning's action by some drivers, and thanked customers for their understanding.

They said about 50 drivers had joined this morning's protest but that the firm still had about 90 cars operating to ensure all journeys were carried out - although bosses admitted some were late.

Managing director of Go Carz, Carl Wilday, said: "The staff and drivers who worked this morning were fantastic, and the vast majority of customers were very understanding about the situation and appreciated that everyone was doing their best.

"As all of the drivers are self-employed, they are not on strike as such because they are able to work when they want, but we are aware that a small number of drivers are trying to cause disruption.

"Their main issues are about a new system we have introduced which has made our processes more efficient for customers.

"The system means that drivers can no longer decline certain jobs, and they have to be at the specific pick-up point before marking the job as complete, which obviously means a better service for customers.

"However, a very small number of drivers are unhappy about the new system and are also calling for lower rents, which we cannot do as we are already among the lowest rents in Telford, so they have staged this protest.

"We appreciate there have been some teething troubles with the new system which we are working to resolve and we will continue reasonable discussions with any drivers who have a genuine issue.

"We always encourage feedback from our drivers because it's important to us that they are happy so they can carry out a professional service for our customers.

"The majority of our drivers are perfectly happy with the new system, and to be blunt, if anyone was really unhappy they could quite easily go and work for another taxi firm, which does happen from time to time - drivers moving between firms is quite common in the industry."