Rhyming slang perhaps ?
I would normally take it to mean moving trailers within a company’s yard or to a point close by. I wouldn’t call a journey further than “close by” a shunt but there appear to be some variation on that going by other replies. If you think about railway shunters, possibly where the term originates, that might help. Railway shunters don’t undertake journeys as such they move equipment from one location where it is no longer needed to another location where it is for it to be taken further by another engine/crew.
As a lot of people have already said, ‘shunting’ duties will vary from company to company, and in big firms possibly even from site to site.
In our firm, I would say shunting generally involves moving/loading trailers, hooking up and unhooking to get the fleet right for the next day, any other yard duties as rquired. In our case, ‘shunting’ wouldn’t normally include making deliveries to customers, although it can involve driving considerable distances (we have trampers parked up overnight in the Midlands, and our shunters run loaded trailers down and bring empties back, a distance of maybe 100 miles each way).
However, if a local-ish customer requires a night delivery and there are no ‘normal’ drivers avaialable, the shunters would be expected to do it.
Most job descriptions and contracts will contain wording along the lines of “…and any other duties, as required by the Company”. This will pretty much cover them in the event of any dispute.
What’s the argument over?
As the OP says that he is going to a tribunal, I would guess that the tribunal would ONLY be concerned with the definition of shunting within his own company and not bothered about the many various different descriptions from other companies.
grumpybum, be careful if you’re going to go down the legal route. At one company I worked for a shunt meant moving a trailer from a bay, shutting the doors and parking it up in the trailer park. Another company I worked for classed a shunt as moving a trailer between Preston and Heysham/Liverpool/Birkenhead/Fleetwood etc. It can be very ambiguous depending on the company 
woody2808:
At one company I worked for a shunt meant moving a trailer from a bay, shutting the doors and parking it up in the trailer park. Another company I worked for classed a shunt as moving a trailer between Preston and Heysham/Liverpool/Birkenhead/Fleetwood etc. It can be very ambiguous depending on the company
Thats exactly as i understand it too.
For the OP, my understanding and experience of shunting is that yes it can require loading /unloading of trailers.
Lucy:
For our shunters, and most shunters based on container ports, “shunting” involves the loading/unloading/moving of containers on and off trailers within the internal dock area.
Where ya bin Luce? 
grumpybum:
I would very much appreciate some opinions on this question. If you were told that you were required to “do some shunting” what would you expect that to mean? Would you think that you would be moving a trailer or trailers a short distance from yard to yard? Would you expect to be loading a trailer, moving it and unloading it? Or something else?Please be aware that I am trying to gather this information for a specific reason, and that responses may be printed out and presented in a Tribunal case. I don’t want to be any more specific as I don’t want anyone to be swayed. I would really appreciate genuine, unbiased opinions.
Thank you!!!
PS This has been cleared with Rikki
Enough of all these cryptic questions, just tell us wtf is going on and we’ll tell you whether you’ve got any chance of winning your case or not. 
If i was asked to ‘do a shunt’,it would mean that a load had to be delivered somewhere that one driver couldn’t reach in his driving time,so i would therefore drive or ‘shunt’ the vehicle an hour or so up the road to a point where another driver could take over,starting on a clean tacho and make the delivery destination in his time.
Shunting is whatever interpretation usual practise within that company gives it.
Normally I would expect it to mean internal site work, or trips to very local storage. However I know of one own account operation in North East Lancashire who have what they call a shunt job every night to their southern warehouse near Dunstable, but because it is an internal job they call it a shunt, even though its over 700km return.
Rob K:
Enough of all these cryptic questions, just tell us wtf is going on and we’ll tell you whether you’ve got any chance of winning your case or not.
Ditto** … unless her situations changed, I can only assume shes still running for BE moving the JCBs around the various sites at Utox.
** answers on a postcard or PM please 
Rob K:
Lucy:
For our shunters, and most shunters based on container ports, “shunting” involves the loading/unloading/moving of containers on and off trailers within the internal dock area.
Where ya bin Luce?
I’m always about, Rob. It’s just that I keep finding myself rendered speechless these days… 
I’m with everyone else here.
If I saw a job shunting, I’d think I’m in a yard, moving trailers / trucks onto and off bays.
I did a nights shunting for an agency which basically meant I was a warehouse man - picking and packing - with a licence, and when all picking / packing was done, I’d then put trucks on doors and load them, and park them in order of leaving time.
Our company says do a shunt, it means I’m moving something without loading / unloading, it might be Southampton to Manchester, but if I’m just moving it, then it’s a shunt.
In my opinion, you have NO chance at any tribunal, because, as stated, even if it said ‘job description: shunting vehicles in yard, opening doors…’ it’d have still said ‘and any other duties required by the employer’ or wording similar.
Lucy:
I’m always about, Rob. It’s just that I keep finding myself rendered speechless these days…
Lucy you are truly unique. The only lady of my aquaintance who is
rendered speechless
Tin hat, taxi gone…
Thought shunting would be classed as movement within a yard, if it was from depot to depot wouldn’t that be classed as ‘trunking’?
When i 1st took my present job, my contract stated ‘night trunk driver delivering to Cannock depot’. When my job changed for a while (deliver to a nearer depot) my contract didn’t change but when i got back at night i was responsible for moving the empty trailers from parking (same yard) area to the bay (shunting) so that the ‘warehouseman’ could load them and also to tell the subbies (if any came in) where to drop their trailers. I’d hook up the day drivers respectable units n go home. Now i’m back on Cannock,i am on the ‘night trunk’.
Harry Monk:
It would depend entirely on what you had agreed to do at the job interview.
Agreed.
Perhaps be advised that ‘words only describe other words’ - so it’s the communicated ‘context’ in which the word was mentioned that needs arguing/persuading. Maybe find a similar ‘hole’ in their lack of concise communication and you’ve possibly got evidence that might work in your favour?
Here’s hoping