COMMUTERS, business travellers and holiday makers face chaos after bus drivers voted to strike this Tuesday and Adelaide Airport security staff threatened to ground flights with 24-hour strikes from next month.

In a show of strength the Transport Workers Union — which represents both sets of workers — is using strike action as leverage to pursue better wages and working conditions.

A meeting of drivers employed by Light City Buses — which services a third of Adelaide Metro routes — on Saturday rejected an improved wage offer because it came at a cost of “unacceptable’’ changes to working conditions, the union’s state assistant secretary Edward Lawrie said.

The vote means drivers will go ahead with the 24-hour strike, which will halt a third of Adelaide Metro bus services, Mr Lawrie said.

The strike could affect as many as 50,000 people, and the union has not ruled out further action after Tuesday.

In a double blow to the travelling public, union members employed to provide security screening at Adelaide Airport have been granted permission by the Fair Work Commission to hold their own 24-hour strikes from May 5.

media_camera Union members employed to provide security screening at Adelaide Airport have been granted permission by the Fair Work Commission to hold their own 24-hour strikes from May 5.

The threat of industrial action comes after 90 per cent of ISS Security Staff voted against the company’s 1.3 per cent per annum wage rise offer.

Mr Lawrie said these staff provided all screening at the airport.

“No one can fly in or out without security screening,’’ Mr Lawrie said.

“The industrial action may affect a majority of domestic and international flights from Adelaide.’’

The Light City Buses fleet has around 380 vehicles servicing the northern, southern and outer northeastern suburbs, including Aberfoyle Park, Seacliff, Port Adelaide and Golden Grove.

Drivers had already put a ban on charging fares from Friday, costing the Government an estimated $50,000 a day in revenue.

Mr Lawrie said drivers had an issue with changes to working conditions, not the 3.4 per cent wage increase on offer.

“We’d be happy with a 3 per cent rise so long as working conditions remained the same,’’ he said on Saturday.

“The conditions the company want to change are increasing our shifts by 45 minutes and decreasing the task time for things like signing on and refuelling buses.’’

A spokeswoman for Transport Minister Stephen Mullighan said although the State Government is not party to negotiations between the private bus company and the union, it has been working with both parties to assist in finding a resolution to the dispute.

“Industrial action, including such as the 24-hour stoppage planned for next week will cause considerable disruption to commuters which is why the State Government supported an increased pay offer from Light City Buses similar to how we supported bus companies to resolve the 2014

dispute,” she said.

“Contingency plans are being developed to minimise the impact of any strike on commuters with Light City Buses advising they will aim to cover services where possible using non-union drivers.”

“However, we would urge the TWU to reconsider the stoppage and both parties to return to the negotiating table as many South Australians rely on Light City Buses to get to and from work and study, attend appointments and visit family and friends.”

“Disruptive industrial action is not fair to them.”

An Adelaide Airport spokesman said it was monitoring the “current enterprise agreement negotiations involving ISS Security’’.

“We are confident in ISS’ management of the enterprise agreement negotiations and that they have appropriate contingency plans in place to prevent any impact on operations in the unlikely event of industrial action,’’ he said.