British Rail Union to Ballot Members for Strike Over Christmas
Piccadilly line trains sit in their depot as members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) strike over jobs, pay and pensions in London
James TweedieThe inflationary crisis — caused by sanctions and import embargoes on Russia — has provoked strikes across multiple sectors as pay offers fail to keep up with rising fuel and food bills.The UK faces Christmas rail chaos after a trade union called a ballot for strike action from December 24 until after Boxing Day.Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) Union general secretary Mick Lynch urged members to reject a new pay offer from infrastructure firm Network Rail Monday night, and to vote for extra strikes over the festive season.His vote in favor would mean that RMT members would be instructed not to “book on” for shifts from 18:00 on 24 December until 06:00 on 27 December.Strikes already called for December 13 and 14 will go ahead regardless, along with action in January, Lynch added.”We remain available for talks in order to resolve these issues but we will not bow to pressure from the employers and the government to the detriment of our members,” the union leader insisted.The new offer from the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), including Network Rail and 14 train operating companies, was for a four per cent pay rise this year and another four per cent next year. But with Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation now running at over 11 per cent — thanks to sanctions on energy and food exporter Russia — the union said it did not meet its criteria for pay and conditions. Asked whether the union risked losing public support for its pay demand, Lynch said: “I’m sure that the travelling public will be really disappointed and irritated and angry.”But he stressed to commuters and businesses who had been in touch with the union that rail firms would be indemnified by the government against all losses from the strike, while striking workers would lose “a lot of money” by not working over the holiday period.”The public will lose the convenience of having a train service,” while businesses “all over the country will lose money, undoubtedly,” Lynch said. “The only people who won’t lose money are the train operating companies.” “This is the most peculiar and perverse industrial dispute you will ever come across, because the people I’m negotiating with don’t suffer any detriment whatsoever” from the strike to their “lavish salaries… in the millions” he added.
The Department for Transport was "punishing brewers, restauranteurs, entertainment industry" for the sake of an "ideological dispute with the railways and the trade unions" and to show other public-sector workers that "they've got to be impoverished for the state of the economy that this government drove us into," Lynch charged.
WorldNew ‘Winter of Discontent’ Strike Wave Threatens UK Christmas Festivities25 November, 16:08 GMTNetwork Rail accused the RMT of “playing fast and loose with people’s Christmas plans.””This response from the RMT to a significantly enhanced offer exposes their true priority — using the British public and Network Rail workers as pawns in a fight with the government,” said the firm’s chief negotiator Tim Shoveller, asking: “What use is a referendum that means the strike disruption is inevitable?”Transport Secretary Mark Harper pointed out that fellow rail union the TSSA had called off its Christmas strikes to consult members on accepting the deal.”It’s incredibly disappointing that, despite a new and improved deal offering job security and a fair pay rise, the RMT is not only continuing with upcoming industrial action but has called more strikes over Christmas,” Harper said.”The government has played its part by facilitating a fair and decent offer but, by instructing its members to reject it, the RMT has failed to play its part and our rail network now faces more harmful disruption rather than helpful discussion.”The so-called cost-of-living crisis has sparked strikes across multiple sectors as employers’ pay offers of around four to five per cent fail to keep up with soaring prices.
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