DRIVING tests face being cancelled after planned strike action over working hours involving Darlington and Durham examiners.

An overwhelming 91 per cent of Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) members backed the walkout in protest of revised working hours.

The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency plans would introduce longer shifts for examiners in a bid to create more “flexible” working options.

A spokesman at Darlington Driving Training Centre said: “Only those examiners in the union will strike and even then not all of them might chose to.

“The point is to cause as much impact as possible and we don’t really have a boat-load of staff if they do choose to be on the picket line.”

The nationwide walkout by union members is planned to disrupt test centres for two days starting from 8am tomorrow morning (Thursday, November 19).

After similar strikes in 2014, test candidates were able to re-book their exam at no extra cost, but current waiting times are between eight and 11 weeks at Durham and Darlington.

PCS Union general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “These plans show a blatant disregard for road safety and we’re appalled that DVSA is pressing ahead instead of negotiating with us.”

Trade unions agreed to a new standard employment contract in April 2014 which included transitional payments that ended at the start of this month.

DVSA chief executive Paul Satoor said: “We have also recently offered operational staff a number of flexible working options to enable us to provide even more convenient and flexible services to our customers.

“It is disappointing that the trade unions have now chosen to oppose some aspects of the contract and the more flexible working options.

“We are doing everything we can to minimise and disruption to customers.”