Rail unions

An Inquiry has found a culture of sexism, harassment and bullying in the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA). Helena Kennedy KC reported: “It gave me no pleasure to uncover a series of appalling incidents, alongside leadership and management failings in the TSSA. These incidents included inappropriate and sexual touching, sexual assault, coercive and manipulative behaviour, violent and disrespectful language, humiliation and denigration of members of staff, reps and members of the Executive Committee.” Included in the recommendation is that none of the current senior staff she calls...

In January a person was stabbed at Woolwich station on the Elizabeth Line. Fortunately the victim only sustained minor injuries and the perpetrator was later caught by police. As for staff who witnessed the scene, they were given special leave to process an understandably traumatic experience. The situation has got staff even more concerned about our own safety. In case of an attack, we have a designated “place of safety”, usually the lockable Assistance pods you see by gatelines. Yet many staff do not have the requisite keys to access them. We have been told for months that more keys are...

On Wednesday 18 January, the front page of the Metro newspaper previewed the mass coordinated strike planned for 1 February with the headline "one out, all out". The headline was accompanied by a picture of RMT general secretary Mick Lynch. The picture was, in some ways, an odd choice: only a tiny handful of RMT members (drivers in mainline Train Operating Companies, TOCs, where workers are overwhelmingly organised by another union, Aslef) participated in the 1 February strike. The union's National Executive Committee (NEC) decided to keep the vast bulk of members currently involved in...

From Off the Rails A flurry of media reports towards the week asserted that the Rail Delivery Group, the body representing Train Operating Companies, was set to make a new offer to unions, having received a "mandate" from the government to do so. Then followed a joint statement from RMT and RDG, which said "we have had detailed discussions and we are working jointly towards a revised offer. Both parties have agreed to continue discussions over the next few days." A joint statement between the two sides in a dispute is usually a sign of movement. And if the "revised offer" is being "worked...

From Tubeworker London Underground is imposing job cuts on stations, and lining up cuts on trains via a major restructure that could change drivers' working arrangements and impose cross-depot working. Vacancies are being held in engineering and fleet depots, as a prelude to job cuts. And the company remains committed to delivering pension reform as a condition of its funding settlement with the government. We haven't struck since combine-wide since 10 November. There's been local action since, with four station groups striking alone on 25 November to protest the imposition of new rosters...

The rejection of a meagre pay offer by RMT members on Network Rail has renewed the rail strikes. The strikes continue through December. Beyond that, Aslef members at Train Operating Companies and RMT members on London Underground have voted to renew their industrial action mandates. Cleaners have won their ballots in a majority of companies. TSSA members at some TOCs strike on 17 December. Rail workers will need to dig in; but not aim for disputes that drag on and on. Rather, shorten the disputes by taking action that can win. Given the attitude of the employers and the government, it looks...

The “pro-labour, pro-union” US President Joe Biden has ratified a deal for rail workers to break a national strike that was due to hit on the 9 December. The deal ends a stalemate in negotiations between four out of the 12 US rail unions that have been ongoing for three years and affects 120,000 rail workers. The deal ensures pay increases of up to 24%, but spread over five years. It also fails to add a single extra paid sick day to the zero currently provided, and many workers feel it risks turning the railroad into a “revolving-door job” with long-term job cuts. A handful of “progressives”...

Members of the rail union RMT at Network Rail will strike from 02:00 13 December to 01:59 hours on 15 December, and from 02:00 16 December to 01:59 hours on 18 December; from 02:00 3 January to 01:59 5 January, and 02:00 hours on 6 January to 01:59 hours on 8 January, with an overtime ban from 18 December to 2 January. Workers at the TOCs will strike on 13-14 and 16-17 December and 3-4 and 6-7 January (each strike starting 00:01 and ending 23:59). We made a clear statement that we want to fight on in our dispute over pay, jobs, and conditions by delivering massive majorities for continued...