Great Western Coffee Shop

Thousands of workers with some of the UK's biggest train operators and Network Rail will be asked to vote on strike action in disputes over jobs and pay. The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said a yes vote among its 40,000 members could lead to the biggest rail strike in modern history.

The union claimed Network Rail is planning to cut at least 2,500 safety-critical maintenance jobs as part of a £2 billion reduction in spending, while workers at train operators have been subject to pay freezes and changes to their terms and conditions. Strike action could begin in June if workers vote to walkout in the ballot running from April 26 to May 24.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Railway workers have had to contend with pay freezes, the prospect of losing their jobs and repeated attacks on their terms and conditions. Removing 2,500 safety-critical jobs from Network Rail will spell disaster for the public, make accidents more likely and will increase the possibility of trains flying off the tracks.

“Train operating companies have praised our members for being key workers during the pandemic but have refused to keep staff pay in line with inflation and soaring living costs. As a result, thousands of railway workers have seen their living standards plummet and have run out of patience.

“The way for trade unions to effectively take on the cost-of-living crisis is to stand up for their members at work and take industrial action when employers are not moved by the force of reasoned argument. A national rail strike will bring the country to a standstill, but our members’ livelihoods and passenger safety are our priorities.”

The ballot will be among RMT members on Network Rail and Chiltern Railways, Cross Country Trains, Greater Anglia, LNER, East Midlands Railway, c2c, Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, South Eastern Railway, South Western Railway, Island Line, GTR (including Gatwick Express), Transpennine Express, Avanti West Coast, and West Midlands Trains.

Rail travel is beginning to recover. Strikes will turn passengers away again. The RMT seem incapable of dialogue with employers and go immediately to ballots for strike action. Always shooting first. Trouble is what the RMT aim at...

(https://i.ibb.co/b3XhQSX/5bad93d2200000e500ff0d8c.jpg)

One has been offered, but the RMT wants one over the RPI again.

What has been offered, Chris?  And does that offer extend to all RMT members?

In the ONS publication – Shortcomings of the Retail Prices Index as a
measure of inflation – the then National Statistician in his foreword referred to “general inflation” in relation to the RPI.

nflation. In the 12 months to March prices rose by:
CPI 7.0% up 0.8% from 6.2% (most used measure)
RPI 9.0% up 0.8% from 8.2% (still widely used)
CPIH 6.2% up 0.7% from 5.5% (ONS prefers it but no-one uses it except Ofwat)

Union threatens ‘biggest rail strike in modern UK history’

RMT to ballot more than 40,000 workers at Network Rail and train firms in dispute over jobs and pay

More than 40,000 railway workers are to be balloted in a dispute over jobs and pay that a union says could result in Britain’s biggest rail strike in modern history.

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) said staff would be asked to vote on strike action over Network Rail’s plans to cut at least 2,500 maintenance jobs as part of a £2bn reduction in spending on the network.

Meanwhile, workers at train operators have been subject to pay freezes and changes to their terms and conditions.

The RMT said it was the biggest ballot it has undertaken of its members for a single dispute since the union was formed in 1990. The ballot opens on 26 April and closes on 24 May, so strike action could begin in June.

The dispute is just one of many battles over pay being fought across the UK as salary increases fail to keep up with a soaring rate of inflation that hit 7% last month and is forecast to rise to 10%.

The Communication Workers Union announced on Wednesday that Post Office workers were to stage a one-day strike on 3 May. The CWU said the action was in response to a pay freeze for 2021 and the offer of a 2% increase from April this year alongside a £250 one-off lump sum, which officials described as “exceptionally poor”.

The RMT’s general secretary, Mick Lynch, said: “Railway workers have had to contend with pay freezes, the prospect of losing their jobs and repeated attacks on their terms and conditions.

“Removing 2,500 safety-critical jobs from Network Rail will spell disaster for the public, make accidents more likely and will increase the possibility of trains flying off the tracks.

He added that “thousands of railway workers” had seen their living standards “plummet” and had “run out of patience”.

The ballot will be among RMT members on Network Rail and the train operators Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry, Greater Anglia, LNER, East Midlands Railway, c2c, Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, Southeastern, South Western Railway, Island Line, GTR (including Gatwick Express), TransPennine Express, Avanti West Coast, and West Midlands Trains.

Network Rail was “disappointed” that the RMT had taken the decision to ballot for strike, its regional director Tim Shoveller said.

He said the pandemic had hit the railway hard adding: “We know travel habits and passenger demand have changed and the industry has to change, too. We cannot keep relying on government handouts, and so we must work together with train operators and our trades unions to save millions of pounds and deliver a more efficient railway.”

The Post Office strike will involve counter staff, as well as those in clerical, administration and call centres. So-called crown post offices will be affected as will smaller sub-post offices.

A Post Office spokesperson said: “We want to assure our customers that the vast majority of our 11,500 branches are unaffected by this decision and will remain open throughout the day.”

Meanwhile, at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), UK workers have voted for industrial action for the first time in the pharmaceutical firm’s history. The workers, members of the union Unite, voted 86% in favour of strike action.

Unite said GSK, which produces products such as Sensodyne and Panadol as well as medications for combating critical illnesses, has a 48-hour window to make a “much-improved offer” or strike action will be announced.

Unite’s general secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “Never before have our members at GSK voted for strike action – their anger is a clear response to the company’s colossal corporate greed.”

GSK made a profit of £8.8bn last year.

A spokesperson for GSK said: “We recognise the impact inflation rates are having on people around the country and are strongly committed to supporting the skilled people who work in GSK manufacturing.

“We have offered a 4% increase to base salary, in addition to a one-off award – equivalent to around 2% of base salary – as well as an annual bonus for 2021 which paid out above-target.

“We are disappointed that the Unite union has taken the decision to strike, but remain committed to working with them to find a solution.”

Railway workers have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action across Network Rail and the train operating companies, in the biggest endorsement for industrial action by railway workers since privatisation.

71% of those balloted took part in the vote with 89% voting in favour of strike action and only 11% voting against.

The union will now be demanding urgent talks with Network Rail and the 15 train operating companies that were balloted to find a negotiated settlement to the dispute over pay, jobs and safety.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch: "Today's overwhelming endorsement by railway workers is a vindication of the union's approach and sends a clear message that members want a decent pay rise, job security and no compulsory redundancies.

"Our NEC will now meet to discuss a timetable for strike action from mid-June, but we sincerely hope ministers will encourage the employers to return to the negotiating table and hammer out a reasonable settlement with the RMT."

END

Notes:

RMT balloted over 40,000 members in Network Rail and the train operating companies

The following companies have voted for strike action and action short of strike:

Network Rail

Chiltern Railways,
Cross Country Trains,
Greater Anglia,
LNER,
East Midlands Railway,
c2c,
Great Western Railway,
Northern Trains,
South Eastern
South Western Railway
Transpennine Express,
Avanti West Coast,
West Midlands Trains

The following company voted for action short of strike:

GTR (including Gatwick Express)

I am shocked by the scale of support for a strike.
A NARROW majority in favour of a strike would not have surprised me, but an 89%/11% majority in favour of a strike shocks me.

And with a generous turnout, the result is genuinely representative.

Does anyone know if the railway freight operators will be striking ? or only the passenger TOCs?

I suspect the signallers on the Island Line are RMT & they voted to strike

The driver behind all this is No 10, the political pressures on the Exec Teams of the enormous, I get the sense that the Exec do not have the freedom to negotiate with the Unions without refereeing back to No 10.

There is a lot of unrest at grassroots level and management level, it is highly likely that during any industrial action managers may just work their contracted hours whether in a Union or not

Much as I can't stand this government I do think they are up for the fight. I don't think this is a battle the RMT will win.

I've just been listening to a discussion on Channel 5. Why is it that all of the critics believe that all staff on the railway are drivers earning £60K+ ?

There are platform staff, ticket office staff, cleaners and others - all earning significantly less than drivers.

Dear Graham
 
You may have seen the RMT’s announcement last night announcing a vote in favour of taking industrial action. This affects not only GWR but other Train Operating Companies across England, and Network Rail too. The RMT National Executive Committee is considering the result and they will let us know their decision in due course, with no strike dates announced as yet.
 
While we are disappointed with the result, we do understand the issues raised. We very much welcome the opportunity to talk with the RMT to avert strike action, and we already have dates in the diary to discuss this. Throughout the pandemic, the railway industry has received over £16bn of taxpayer support to keep the railways running and I believe everyone recognises that this is not sustainable, with the industry going forward taking no more than its fair share. I do not want to see the post-Covid recovery that our teams at GWR and colleagues and stakeholders across the industry have been working towards damaged, nor the case for the changes needed to secure jobs and services into the future.
 
While we hope we can reach an agreement through discussions with the Trades Unions, we continue to develop contingency plans should strike action take place, and my team and I will keep you updated.
 
I have also shared a video for our customer and stakeholders on our social media, which is available to view here.
 
Best wishes
 
Mark
 
Mark Hopwood CBE | Managing Director | Great Western Railway
Milford House | 1 Milford Street | Swindon | SN1 1HL

Sadly Phil in most people's minds all they think about is the person who drives the trains. Though these days, with so many stations having no staff whatsoever and trains operated by DOO, it's easy to understand why many people think the only person who works on the railways is the train driver.

Thanks for the heads up Chris. Sadly, I think it's an odds on certainty that the vote will go the way of strike action. Won't be booking any rail related travel for June.

Sadly I already have, & will be watching this saga unfold with interest. Our daughter's getting married in Scotland on 11th June and  the advance rail tickets (first class no less!) have been bought and paid for already. I've seen strike action is threatened for "mid June" so I'm keeping everything I have two of crossed that we can still get there, even if getting back will be a problem...

Talking to rail staff in South Devon the emphasis was, surprisingly, not pay.
  The 'toxic' relationship between staff and management seemed to be a
  major issue.

Managers who know which side their bread is buttered may well step up. Particularly as they are the grade that could see redundancies first. They may want to prove their worth while the troops are blindly led into battle by Mick Lynch.

Much as I can't stand this government I do think they are up for the fight. I don't think this is a battle the RMT will win.

There was a pretty crude attack on the RMT leadership in yesterday's Times, based on their pay, Marxist tendencies, and support of Putin's Russia over the Crimea. Very short on analysis - more what you's expect in the Mail, really,

Now I can't see any scandal in the top three officials being paid around £100K, and if Mick Lynch doesn't love bosses it could have a lot ot do with his being blacklisted by the construction employers. But with Alex Gordon (president) in particular, he's in the leadership of CPGB, which has been following the Kremlin's propaganda even since all pretence of socialism was dropped. I find that baffling, but then the fact that CPGB still exists takes some believing.

I really fear that the customers of the rail industry will lose.  What an archaic way to sort out your differences!

But with Alex Gordon (president) in particular, he's in the leadership of CPGB, which has been following the Kremlin's propaganda even since all pretence of socialism was dropped. I find that baffling, but then the fact that CPGB still exists takes some believing.

https://twitter.com/GWRHelp/status/1529442805084561409?t=zDM7BguIoTQFoUEXQnhOGQ&s=09

Message from Mark Hopwood. Actually sums up the colossal amounts of taxpayers money pumped into the railways recently very well, and provides very good perspective and context for the many who need it.

Not sure about ‘recouping’….I doubt that’s possible with revised working patterns? Simply to reduce that cost from the current subsidy to something 10% less. So looking to cut £1.6billion from the subsidy rather than recover/recoup anything already spent.

The subsidy is (in broad terms) the difference between the cost of operation and the farebox income, and from what I saw on Monday, that farebox has come back strongly, but probably still has some way to go.   Trains were crowded enough / busy along the south coast though I have a feeling that some of the 4 car trains would have been 8 cars in the past.  5 and 4 cars on the Cardiff - Portsmouths I used.  The TransWilts service at 09:46 from Westbury had a real surge on when the incoming train arrived - amazing as I expect that train's main pickups to be Trowbridge and Melksham.

Any "recouping" will be when and if the farebox income exceeds the operating cost.  With shorter trains in places, that's unlikely (although you could "simplify" fares by removing better value options).  And it's also unlikely if reliability gets worse - be it because of staff illness, industrial action, cows on the line or cracked trains!

however the UK Government made the decision that the rail network would operate a full train service despite there being no or very little revenue being generated. 

I notice Scotrail have offered their Driver's 4.2 %  with no compulsory redundancies.
 
  Quite a good offer in my opinion,  surprised if GWR would match that bearing in mind their agenda to
   'run-down' ticket offices.

 Apparently their was the rumour of changing Schedule 17 with regard to the
 ticket office hours. Of course with the expansion, in some area's, of 'smart cards.'
 and e-tickets etc. etc.  the downturn in the use of ticket offices has alarmed ticket office staff.

 

A current small-scale example is the not-for-profit rail travel agent Severn-Dee Travel at Gobowen station http://www.severndeetravel.org.uk/ (http://www.severndeetravel.org.uk/).

Coming in from left field, and going way off piste ...

Is there a case for turning things around in a similar way at railway stations?

Quote from: grahame on Today at 08:04:17 am
Coming in from left field, and going way off piste ...

Is there a case for turning things around in a similar way at railway stations?

I don’t think that’s left field at all.  It’s already happening to some degree on the railway and there will clearly be no long term future for ticket offices as we know them.

I don’t think that’s left field at all.  It’s already happening to some degree on the railway and there will clearly be no long term future for ticket offices as we know them.

Almost all ‘white collar’ staff are members of the TSSA union, so separate to the RMT and with very little power to wield.

Yes indeed.  My reply was directed at the ticket office staffing at TOC level rather than Network Rail/management level.

Communist dinosaurs. Sadly there doesn't appear to be an approaching extinction event for the RMT leaders. While their members lose money by striking, Mick, Steve and co will continue to rake in their healthy salaries.

It amazes me that so many, apparently sane, RMT members buy into their outdated witterings and union methods.

For the record, I'm not anti-union. I'm anti-RMT.

You must not underestimate to discontent of the grassroots railway workers.  The ballot for industrial action has been something the grassroots has wanted the RMT to hold several months ago.  Even the non Union staff are discontent and my not cover turns outside their contracted hours, overtime is voluntary.

It would be a mistake to tar the average RMT, TSSA, ASLEF etc members as card carrying members of the communist party.  The leadership of trade unions is as democratic and transparent if not more so as the election of the leader of the conservative party, labour party etc.

Just to be clear I am not a member of a Trade Union

With the demise of ticket offices, I suspect that the cheapest option will rarely be offered.

A friend will be walking from Appleby to Whitby in July. It'll be interesting to know whether any automated solution will offer an Off-Peak Return from Exeter to Leeds and singles from Leeds to Appleby and Whitby to Leeds or will the traveller be expected to have a high degree of knowledge to request such an option?

Yes, I agree.  Although I suspect ticket vending machines will also largely become a thing of the past in the coming years, as e-tickets/passes will quickly become established as the primary way of obtaining authority to travel.

What about the minority who are and I suspect will still be in the future unable or unwilling to use the internet?

The RMT union’s vote for strike action should prompt a rethink of a short-sighted cuts programme.

At some point this summer, a popular vote will help determine the location of the future headquarters of Great British Railways (GBR). Unveiled with boosterish enthusiasm last year by the transport secretary, Grant Shapps, this new public body will supersede Network Rail, overseeing both services and infrastructure. Wherever GBR is eventually based – candidate hosts include historic train towns such as Crewe and Darlington – it will have its work cut out.

Last week’s overwhelming vote in favour of industrial action by members of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has been predictably portrayed as a return to 1970s-style union militancy. Against a backdrop of soaring inflation and public sector pay caps, a potential confrontation between organised labour and the government does have a certain retro quality. But the Life on Mars alarmism is overdone and misses the deeper issues at stake. The RMT’s demands for better pay and job security should be seen in the context of an industry whose future is suddenly and disturbingly uncertain.

Total passenger numbers on trains have now returned to about 80% of pre-Covid levels. But the figures are significantly lower on profitable commuter routes – particularly those into London. White-collar workers have embraced hybrid and remote working as the new normal, and the rail industry faces an annual £2bn shortfall in revenue. While the population stayed at home during the pandemic, the government spent an extra £15bn to keep the network running. But as it turns the financial taps off and demands deep spending cuts, the government is in effect ordering the rail industry to cut its cloth according to these changed circumstances.

Understandably, given the high proportion of fixed costs involved in running a railway, the RMT’s leaders fear that their members will bear the brunt of this coming retrenchment. As well as a pay rise to reflect the impact of double-digit inflation – after a two-year freeze for many workers – the union is seeking to ensure that there are no compulsory redundancies among station staff and maintenance workers. The resounding vote to strike if necessary has strengthened the RMT’s hand. Its warnings about cutting corners on safety should be taken seriously, given previous disasters, though the benefits of new technologies should not be ruled out. On the other side of the table, Network Rail and the train operators are justified in arguing that changing patterns of rail usage may require more flexible working patterns. Compromises will be needed if levels of disruption not seen since the 1990s are to be avoided.

In the longer term, the government must decide what future it actually wants for the sector. Imposed cuts leading to less frequent, more crowded trains could trigger a spiral of decline. That would be utterly at odds with Whitehall’s levelling up agenda, which purportedly aims to boost and develop public transport infrastructure and services beyond south-east England. It would also undermine the vital role that the rail industry should play in the country’s transition to net zero. As a TUC study published this month argues, investment and imagination are needed during a crucial decade when a transition away from cars, not trains, is the priority.

One of the leading historians of our railways, Christian Wolmar, has written about the “inability of successive governments to set out precisely what they are for”. Should rail travel be treated as essentially a business like any other, or as a public good to be run – and subsidised – according to different criteria? Driven by a short-sighted determination to rein in spending following the pandemic, Mr Shapps is reverting to the former proposition. That could have lasting and damaging consequences. Our railways deserve better than a future of managed decline.

That was in today’s Observer.

Posted at 1830 today, so actually more likely to be tomorrow’s print edition of the Guardian.

It'll become a progressively smaller cohort - "unable" to use the internet will need to be properly catered for, but "unwilling"? I suggest that they will need to move with the times.

I’m not sure it’s a case of unwilling, more a case of the independence we have previously offered as an affluent country to those in different positions to the majority of us. Set up individuals and a coherent system so everyone can join in and I agree that we can positively progress in the way we live and operate, but assuming that some don’t swap to the technology leading society because they don’t want to move with the times is foolhardy. We must remember that it is largely privately funded technology and the private companies that adopt it leading the rapid change in culture and society nowadays, rather than authorities including the government. As often explained on this forum, even those in the know often see the flaws in automated systems and apps that don’t tell the full truth. So expecting everyone to be on board without a reasonable and negotiated period of inclusion isn’t particularly fair.

Unfortunately, I can't provide links to future physical print media. Would you like directions to the newsagents? :P

Rail staff are set for battle, but a post-Covid strike could run off track
The working-from-home revolution has altered the dynamics of industrial action on the transport network

The railway has long been quietly gearing up for what is being headlined as the biggest industrial battle in a generation. Now, with the weapon of a national strike ballot primed, the RMT rail union has to decide whether to pull the trigger.

Its national executive committee will discuss next steps in the coming days, after 40,000 members across Network Rail and 15 train operating companies voted overwhelmingly for action. For now, it is officially inviting more talks with train operating companies – a slightly perplexing stance for some in the industry, who said the RMT had jumped the gun before pay discussions had begun.

Nonetheless, many expect the first in what is likely to be a series of 24-hour stoppages to be called for late June. At an estimated daily cost of £30m, that will prove, as transport secretary Grant Shapps warned, damaging to an industry very much in recovery mode, but not necessarily a full-blown logistical crisis for the country, as some have suggested.

Senior rail figures looked on aghast as Shapps said ministers were considering limiting the right to strike – a move that inevitably inflamed unions. More thoughtful parts of government have been trying quietly to avoid conflict: bosses are drawing up contingency plans that will not work if all rail unions join the strike.

For the RMT, there is a significant dent in an otherwise unanimous vote, with Govia Thameslink Railway employees only backing action short of a strike. GTR contains three big commuter operations, Thameslink, Great Northern and Southern. The latter was the scene of bitter and prolonged strikes in 2016-17, a time when most of its customers were forced to come into London to work regardless.

Office staff are now proved well able to work from home – a change that will hugely reduce political pressure from MPs in the commuter belt to settle strikes at all costs. And without continuous strikes for more than 72 hours, there is little prospect of goods or power supplies being disrupted, despite dire warnings over the critical role of rail freight.

The Southern strikes are also a reminder that the RMT train staff alone were not enough, even then, to force a total stoppage – or to entirely halt the reforms they were fighting.

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The critical RMT weapon in any strike this time will be its 20,000 Network Rail members, including around 5,000 signallers, who would be able to stop large parts of the network running. But the newest parts of the railway – such as Thameslink and the intercity main lines – use digital signalling that can be operated by a handful of staff, allowing managers and non-RMT signallers to keep a limited service going.

Other unions may yet play a role, including the TSSA, which represents more of the middle management – including the contingency staff – and would have leverage in combined action. The train drivers’ union, Aslef, is unlikely to act before autumn – but as a dispute in Scotland shows, even the withdrawal of rest-day working can have a massive impact in an industry that has a dearth of drivers.

Yet the standoff does threaten to escalate. There is no obvious answer to the changing patterns of travel and lower revenue for the railway, which has so many fixed costs. One target could be the rolling stock companies, who have continued to make vast profits. But rail pay and productivity will come first – and the prospect of a quiet settlement, with the kind of index-linked pay rise normally enjoyed across all ranks, has receded with galloping inflation.

That makes the stakes higher for staff, whose wages are eroded, but also for ministers, who appear to be heeding – despite protestations – the Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, who urged pay restraint to curb inflation, despite the cost-of-living crisis.

The bigger immediate political headache may not be so much that the railway stalls – but that the outcome will be watched intently by other parts of the public sector, also desperate for a pay rise, who can wear the badge of pandemic frontline heroes with even more justification than railway staff.

It does if it costs money to staff sales points? (Just making the point, not saying I'm in agreement)

Perhaps, but doing away with the old is of no benefit to those using the new.

It is simply saving money for a private rail operator, the profit of which goes to shareholders.

*Rant*

What point are you actually trying to prove with this needless pedantry over where, when and in what format the editorial I quoted was published? I saw it on the Guardian website, where it says its a Guardian editorial, and that's from where I linked and quoted.

I'm fully aware of the Guardian Media Group's setup, and the Observer's place in it. I also know that the Observer's business agenda (looking to the week ahead) is different to the groups' editorials. Hence why the piece you've quoted isn't the same ("That was in today's Observer") as the one I posted.
*Rant over*

Posted at 1830 today, so actually more likely to be tomorrow’s print edition of the Guardian.

It is, if the alternative, now that costs are being paid directly by the taxpayer, is reduction in services to achieve the savings required. Are you suggesting that the taxpayer should pump £1.5billion a year into the railways so as you retain things as currently?


Get with the times? The operators now are paid a management fee, and costs and revenue pass to the taxpayer. So the 'profit' you refer to evaporates, turning into a £1.5billion / year loss. That's unsustainable, surely.

What's your suggestion then, if your plan would be to retain all the staff?

Yes. Retain the staff and the public should fund a railway for everyone all over the country. Defund and reduce the railway now and it won’t be coming back. The railway is of economic significance to this country even if it’s not noticeable to the operators or the, referred to as a minority, taxpayer. Yes, less people are travelling to work, largely in London, each day but reducing staff and costs now under the impression that the railway is always going to have this level of passengers is short term for profit thinking and excluding more people. This is an opportunity to build a railway for everyone, promised by this ludicrous government. You drop staff and services now and you will require incentive and demand to get the same services back when things change. The bargaining price suggested that the public will pay is nothing more than the bribery that will be used as an excuse to release more of it into the private sector and make it a consumer choice rather than what should be a life necessity. Nobody ever questions the cost of the tarmac and road infrastructure which covers this country as it’s recognised that its benefits are beyond the price of repair. Perhaps we should consider privatising roads.

is a way of creating equal access.

You drop staff and services now

It is easy to blame this all on the RMT leadership, but you don't get that sort of result in a ballot unless there is an awful lot if discontent among staff. If there is then it needs fixing. Unfortunately the treasury is now running the railways (by which I probably mean treasury minsters) and on past record they understand less about managing people than they do about engineering.  They do not understand that if you treat people well you can get away with paying them less. 

Of course they want people to leave to cut costs, but they don't understand that this approach usually means that the wrong people leave. You then end up with the wrong mix of staff. You also end up paying your worst people more than you need to do the job badly because there is no on else to do the job.  They are still discontented and therefore treat ordinary passengers in the same way that management treat them. 

Parking the rhetoric, I'd be interested in your thoughts as to whether the RMT's headline demands are realistic in the current climate - substantively, a pay rise approaching double figures, and guarantees of no compulsory redundancies?

With the taxpayer having pumped £billions into the railways over the course of the pandemic, from where do you consider these additional costs should be funded, given falling passenger numbers, demand and therefore revenue?

When did negotiations begin? From what I can gather the RMT balloted for strike action before any meaningful discussions began. Arse about face surely?

The unions claim that the DfT would not allow train operators to open negotiations with them I believe.

The unions claim that the DfT would not allow train operators to open negotiations with them I believe.

However it would seem that NR (aka DfT / No10) have made a 2.5% pay offer from 1st July 2022 to the TSSA for management grades, the TSSA have said this offer does not resolve the dispute ..................... negotiations / haggling continues

A belief? Any corroboration?

Last week the DfT urged the RMT to come to the negotiating table. Saying they were disappointed that the RMT had balloted for strike action before entering negotiations. Someone's lying. Much as I loathe the current government I believe them in this instance.

Only what I’ve heard (hence my wording).  Though I’ve heard it straight from the mouth of a union branch secretary.

The RMT have been at the negotiating table subsequent to the ballot result.  What is unclear is what offer to negotiate took place from either party before the ballot.

I believe (there I go again) that ASLEF are balloting in the next few days.

I’m not sure I believe either side, especially given the sneaky way the DfT have been operating recently.  In many ways they’re welcome to each other.

Good to see at least one rail union doing things correctly and negotiating before resorting to a strike ballot. I expect ASLEF will be/are doing the same.

RDG, NR and DfT have all confirmed that the RMT balloted for strike action/action short of a strike without engaging in meaningful discussions first.

Who decides what is meaningful?

RDG, NR and DfT have all confirmed that the RMT balloted for strike action/action short of a strike without engaging in meaningful discussions first.

Makes it sound like the RMT weren't interested in meaningful discussions, doesn't it?  However, Nigel Harris, editor of RAIL magazine, says in a very good latest editorial that the DfT only gave Network Rail permission to start formal discussions with the unions less than a week before the RMT ballot result was in.

Why weren't they given permission earlier I wonder?

Anyway, now discussions are ongoing, hopefully a resolution can be found that avoids widespread strikes.

Absolutely correct, NR Exc started talks with the Unions several months ago but there were no firm proposals put before the Unions by the Exc, the phase was 'we are just looking at ideas and want staff involvement' it was this approach ie no firm proposals that got the Unions and their members backs up.  There are normally good but robust relations between NR Exc and the Unions

The key issue for me ....

Do you have a citation/source for that?

It'd certainly help the RMT's case if verified.

The key issue for me (and I suspect if the truth is known  Mark Hopwood and his teams) is the current stranglehold on GWER services that the ..................

ASLEF rejected 4.2% from Scotrail yesterday.

Again, unless something can be confirmed in print, it's the union at fault,

Again, unless something can be confirmed in print, it's the union at fault, and they should totally accept whatever pay and conditions are given (offered!) without question. Well, OK, perhaps say "We don't like what's on offer, and it is a pay cut, with having to work more hours as well. But we won't strike, and accept it this time without further problems".

Why is it always the unions fault?  Nothing to do with the members who it seems, are so brainwashed/right wing, that they will do anything they are told by the branch secretary.

Everyone has a view of who is right and who is therefore wrong.
Like politics really.

That is not how modern day Trade Unions operate, the days of mass votes in the car at Longridge of the 1970's are long gone.


 

SOunds high enough to me: how much are they holding out for?

An offer that was not put to the membership AIUI?  Ballots cost a lot of money of course, but I'm slightly surprised that this wasn't put out to the vote.

It wasn't a simple 4.2% rise mind you, there were 'strings attached'.

I wonder if perhaps ASLEF were a little worried that their members would accept it, so made their decision for them instead?

That’s quite possible.

Train drivers are close to reaching an agreement with ScotRail despite rejecting its latest 4.2% pay offer, the Aslef union has said.

Scottish organiser Kevin Lindsay said more talks with the rail operator would take place on Monday.

21, 23, and 25  June.

Basically taking out five days of rail travel as the train companies won’t be able to run any usable services on the 22nd and 24th if the RMT are able to bring the network to a near total shutdown on the 21st.

Actually, make it six as we all know what happens on Sundays!

Whilst it may lead to further disruption in the short term I do hope TOCs/NR suspend overtime and rest day working during the dispute. If employees want to withdraw their labour then they shouldn't be given the opportunity to make up for lost earnings.

Obviously that will include every Sunday for the next few months.

Basically taking out five days of rail travel as the train companies won’t be able to run any usable services on the 22nd and 24th if the RMT are able to bring the network to a near total shutdown on the 21st.

Whilst it may lead to further disruption in the short term I do hope TOCs/NR suspend overtime and rest day working during the dispute. If employees want to withdraw their labour then they shouldn't be given the opportunity to make up for lost earnings.

I'm actually surprised that the RMT didn't opt for 'Action short of a strike' (i.e an overtime and rest day working ban) as that would have been far more effective as it is not so easy to plan against. More trains would run so the public wouldn't be quite so inconvenienced and it would not generate as much negative publicity.

Not dramatic enough for Lynch and his mob (see what I did there? ;-) ), their political agenda wants and needs the visible confrontation.

Negative publicity isn't something that bothers them, having just heard Lynch ranting on the BBC that much is clear.

There are many decent Trade Unionists who do a vital job. Sadly the RMT Leadership are not amongst them.

They will fail, and they may well drag their industry and their members down with them.

The Union's are going to use the ongoing trouble at air and sea ports during the summer holidays to their advantage, especially as the Government are sitting on the hands regarding the problems with airlines etc blaming overbooking as the problem ..................

I don't see how it's to the RMT's advantage.

Most people are informed enough to understand the difference between the reasons for and problems caused by staff shortages at airports and striking railway employees, and the various owners of responsibility for each.

"Agency staff could be used in place of strikers" According to press reports, the government are considering repealing a law that, at present prohibits use of agency workers to replace strikers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61773437 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61773437)

"Agency staff could be used in place of strikers" According to press reports, the government are considering repealing a law that, at present prohibits use of agency workers to replace strikers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61773437 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61773437)

Not sure wherethey are going to find drivers with appropriate and up to date traction and route knowledge.  If they are going to use staff without that knowledge I am not going anywhere near a train. 

I agree, but I suspect that they were not thinking of drivers.
Platform staff, gateline staff, extra person needed on a 10 car IET, and the like.
Unless of course it is a really long strike in which case they could train drivers.

A source close to the Aslef union insisted that its actions were not comparable with the RMT. "It is a different kind of union," the source said. "The RMT feel they are under an existential threat, which I understand, and they are striking to protect their members' jobs.
"What Aslef is doing is completely different. There are no redundancies of drivers proposed in any of the train operating companies. For the drivers it's simply about pay as many of them haven't had an increase since 2019."

I agree, but I suspect that they were not thinking of drivers.
Platform staff, gateline staff, extra person needed on a 10 car IET, and the like.
Unless of course it is a really long strike in which case they could train drivers.

Mick Lynch was widely admired for his media performance - totally nullifying even the most seasoned journalist ..............

I am starting to get the feeling that the railway strikes are not having the huge effects that the Unions hoped/predicted. The media are trying to hype things up as much as possible (as expected) but the general public doesn't seem that bothered.
Two years of Covid disruption and all that went with it seem to have taught the public/business/industry how to get by reasonably well, with or without a "normal" train service. In fact many people are relishing the opportunity to "work from home" again. Perhaps Arthur Scargill appearing on the picket line was not a good omen for the RMT.......he called an all out strike at completely the wrong time too. 

To note that the TSSA have jouned the RMT in striking on 7 TOCs, including GWR, on August 18 & 20

Virtually all the drivers I’ve spoken to would be happy with a Scotrail style deal.

Virtually all the drivers I’ve spoken to would be happy with a Scotrail style deal.