NORTHERN RAIL today updated its customers across the north of England with information about a strike ballot by the RMT (National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers) union.

The RMT is balloting Northern conductors for strike action over Bank Holiday terms and conditions, even though those terms and conditions were agreed by the union and have been in place for several years.

For conductors, Bank or Public Holidays have been classed as normal working days since they were “traded” for other benefits, including increased salaries and more annual leave, in restructuring agreements several years ago.

Now the RMT has demanded a new, additional payment for all conductors who work on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December.

Adrian Thompson, HR Director for Northern, said: “We have explained to the RMT that we will honour our agreed terms and conditions but will not make any payments over and above those long-standing agreements.

“We do not think it is reasonable for the RMT to demand a new additional payment for these Bank Holidays.

“This is because the previous additional payments for Bank Holidays were traded for other benefits when the restructuring agreements were implemented.

“The RMT is picking and choosing which bits of the agreement it wants to stick to and then calling for strike action when Northern is simply keeping to the joint agreement.”

Northern has 4,800 employees across the north of England and recognises four trades unions, with whom it works to agree terms and conditions of employment for employees such as train drivers, conductors, station teams and engineers.

The RMT will issue ballot papers tomorrow, Tuesday 7 December, and the result is due on 20 December. If there is a vote for strike action then the earliest that a strike could take place would be Monday 27 December.

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NORTHERN UPDATE FOR CUSTOMERS ON POSSIBLE RMT STRIKE ACTION

Following the announcement by the RMT and TSSA unions of industrial action by some of their members employed by Network Rail on 6, 7, 8 and 9 April, East Coast will operate a revised timetable on those days if the strike goes ahead.

East Coast plans to run services on the affected dates between:

• London King’s Cross to Leeds;
• London King’s Cross to York, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow Central;
• Services will call at the usual intermediate stations;
• Services will start running at 0700, with a near normal service until 1830;
• There will be a reduced number of departures from London King’s Cross after 1630;
• Passengers must have completed their journeys by 1830 when services will close down.

We are working closely with Network Rail, along with other train operating companies, and together we expect to be able to publish detailed timetable information for the national rail network on Thursday, 1 April. If East Coast is able to do so, we will publish details of our timetable earlier.

At this stage East Coast will not be issuing refunds or exchanges until we have a clearer view of the timetable. Customers who buy tickets and find their trains are subsequently cancelled due to the industrial action will be entitled to a full refund.

Further details of arrangements for customers who cannot make their planned journey on the affected dates are available online at www.eastcoast.co.uk. Customers can register on the site to receive emails with timetable details as soon as these are confirmed.

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EAST COAST TRAIN SERVICE INFORMATION – PLANNED INDUSTRIAL ACTION

Anthony Smith, Passenger Focus chief executive, said:

“Passengers will be dismayed that strike days have now been announced. Uncertainty, messed up plans and frustration are now the order of the day. Both staff and shareholders depend on passengers for the long-term financial health of the railway. All the strikes will do is put passengers off and potentially force them on to the roads where they will be much less safe. We urge Network Rail and the unions to keep talking, not shouting, and get this settled so that passengers can get back to depending on the railway.”

Passenger Focus urges Network Rail and the train companies to work together, as they plan to lessen the effect of these strikes, to:

• Relax route restrictions so that, on strike days and their aftermath, passengers can use any sensible route to get to their destination
• Take a sensible approach to ticket restrictions so that passengers can use the trains that are running
• Ensure that season ticket holders are appropriately compensated for lost days
• Have plenty of staff on hand to help passengers with information, advice and luggage.

Passenger Focus has the advice below for passengers on how to ‘survive’ potential strikes after Easter.

1. Check for up-to-date information on how services have been disrupted on the National Rail Enquiries website: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/2010/dispute.html or call: 08457 48 49 50

• Check before you book
• Check on the day
• Check before you set off.

2. Register for service disruption text alerts on the National Rail Enquiries website
3. Make sure your mobile telephone is fully charged before you set off
4. Take refreshments
5. Remember to make a claim if your service is disrupted. Individual train companies will outline how they will refund pre-booked tickets and recompense season ticketholders on their websites.

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PASSENGER FOCUS RESPONDS TO POTENTIAL STRIKES AFTER EASTER BY MAINTENANCE WORKERS AND SUPERVISORS

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has announced that RMT signallers and maintenance workers will take strike action on 6, 7, 8 and 9 April.

If this action goes ahead, Network Rail will be manning key signal boxes between the hours of 07:00 and 19:00, allowing us to operate a reduced service on some routes during these hours. Other routes will unfortunately be closed and no services will operate.

We are currently working with Network Rail to finalise the timetable for the strike days and will publish this on our website and at stations from early next week.

While we will endeavour to run as many trains as possible, it will be a much reduced service and trains will be exceptionally busy.

Passengers intending to travel on any of these days should note that no services will operate after 18:50 and should plan their journeys accordingly.

Passengers can also visit the National Rail Enquiries website which features a dedicated disruption page.

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RMT Strike Information

ScotRail today pledged it will be “business as usual” despite growing indications that the RMT will strike during the school holidays at Easter in Scotland.

Steve Montgomery, managing director of ScotRail, said the RMT would show “a blatant disregard for families if it deliberately targets the holidays.”

He added: “Such an action will make us even more determined than ever to keep Scotland’s railway running. It will be business as usual.”

Mr Montgomery’s comments follow ScotRail running more than 95% of services to ensure rugby fans got to and from the Scotland v England Calcutta Cup game at the weekend.

He said that choosing the Easter school holidays to strike would be even more cynical than trying – and failing – to spoil one of Scotland’s biggest events in the sporting calendar, with more than 11,000 rugby fans carried to Edinburgh Waverley and Haymarket.

Of signs that there will be further strikes, Mr Montgomery added: “We will again make every effort to ensure that the travelling public – and the many families who love to use the train for Easter days out – will get as robust a service as possible.”

They are expected to follow UK-wide industrial action by the RMT which could take place over the Easter weekend, Friday 2 April-Monday 5 April in a separate dispute connected to maintenance workers employed by Network Rail.

The strikes in Scotland are over having ticket examiners rather than conductors as the second person on services on the new £300m line between Glasgow and Edinburgh via Airdrie and Bathgate.

The new line, due to open in December, will create 130 new jobs – and the trains are the same as those which have operated in Scotland for 25 years.

ScotRail remains available for meaningful talks at any time.

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Scotrail Keeping services running at Easter

Union announces commitment to strike while talks at ACAS continue. RMT prepared to try to hold Londoners to ransom for more overtime pay.

It is simply astonishing that the RMT issued a press release confirming their plans to strike while we are still negotiating with them at ACAS

Phil Hufton, Chief Maintenance Officer, London Underground

London Underground (LU) has condemned the RMT leadership’s latest planned strike action, with tomorrow planned to be the first of 15 separate days of strike action from 750 members of maintenance staff over alterations to the shift patterns of just 32 staff.

LU has branded RMT’s confirmation of strike action while talks at ACAS continue as ‘astonishing’.

More overtime payments

The RMT have made clear they want farepayers’ money to cover planned maintenance shifts by increasing overtime payments.

Union bosses have also tried to claim that their members’ jobs are at risk from external contractors even though an arrangement to use contractors only to address specific issues has been in place for some time.

In line with existing agreements with its unions LU has proposed revised rosters for members of its Stations Communications and Electrical team, to ensure planned engineering staff are always available when the railway is operating.

The RMT’s leadership has rejected LU’s proposals and has tried to claim that LU is obliged to cover any gaps in rosters with overtime.

This has never been the case and LU will continue to use overtime based solely on business needs.

Good service will operate

Phil Hufton, LU’s Chief Maintenance Officer, said: ‘It is simply astonishing that the RMT issued a press release confirming their plans to strike while we are still negotiating with them at ACAS.

‘This questions the RMT’s claims that they wish to talk and shows they are intent on disrupting London rather than resolving this issue.

‘Londoners will share our dismay at the RMT’s leadership’s attempts to jeopardise the Tube’s operation over this issue.

‘We are planning to introduce a roster covering seven days a week, to ensure planned engineering staff are always available. That agreement already exists, but the RMT is trying to tear it up.

‘We have consulted fully with staff and unions on the proposed changes and we are prepared to continue discussions with the RMT. They should stop threatening industrial action at every opportunity, when all that will do is lose their members more pay.

‘Despite this unjustified threat, it is our intention to operate a good service across the network during any industrial action.’

Check Live Travel News for the latest information on how Tube services are running.

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London Underground condemns planned RMT strike action

Union balloted 750 workers when just 30 staff rosters were under discussion. RMT prepared to disrupt Londoners to get more overtime pay.

We have consulted fully with staff and unions on the proposed changes and we are prepared to continue discussions with the RMT Phil Hufton, LU’s Chief Maintenance Officer

London Underground (LU) has called on the RMT leadership to put a stop to the continued threat of strike action to Londoners, after the union’s leadership threatened action from 750 members of maintenance staff over alterations to the rosters of just 30 staff.

The union’s leadership, which believes LU should use tax and farepayers money to cover maintenance shifts by increasing overtime payments, has also tried to claim that their members’ jobs are at risk from external contractors even though this arrangement to address emergencies has been in place for some time.

Existing agreement

In line with existing agreements with its unions LU has proposed revised rosters for members of its Stations Comms and Electrical team, to ensure planned engineering staff are always available.

The RMT’s leadership has rejected LU’s proposals, and has tried to claim that LU is obliged to cover any gaps in rosters with overtime.

This has never been the case and LU will continue to use overtime based solely on business needs.

Phil Hufton, LU’s Chief Maintenance Officer, said: ‘It is absolutely ludicrous that the RMT’s leadership is prepared to jeopardise the journeys of thousands of Londoners over this issue.

Industrial action

‘We are planning to introduce a roster covering 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to ensure planned engineering staff are always available.

‘That agreement already exists, but the RMT is trying to tear it up.

‘We have consulted fully with staff and unions on the proposed changes and we are prepared to continue discussions with the RMT.

‘They should stop threatening industrial action at every opportunity, when all that will do is lose their members more pay.’

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London Underground calls on RMT leadership to halt ‘ludicrous’ strike threat

Unite leadership fails to get mandate for strike action. Strike vote failure follows ASLEF recommendation to accept pay offer.

Our pay deal offers stability and security, and we urge all of our unions to recommend this fair and final offer to their members.
Richard Parry, Managing Director of London Underground

London Underground (LU) has today called on the Unite leadership to get back to discussions after the union failed to get a mandate from its members for strike action over pay negotiations.

LU has tabled a two-year offer to all unions which would see staff’s pay increase by 1.5 per cent this year, and RPI+ 0.5 per cent – or 0.5 per cent, whichever is the greater – next year.

A ballot of Unite’s circa 500 members on LU closed today, with members rejecting the union leadership’s call for strike action. Instead, members have voted for industrial action short of a strike.

The latest threat comes after ASLEF, the Tube driver’s union, recommended to members that they accept  LU’s above-inflation pay offer.

Despite London Underground inviting all unions for more talks this week, Unite’s leadership appears to be intent on causing more unnecessary industrial action which will only cause Londoners more disruption.

Their members are clearly reluctant to support such action.

Richard Parry, Managing Director of London Underground, said: ‘This low turnout and the vote against strike action shows Unite members do not want to strike.

‘The Unite leadership has failed in its bid to get a mandate for strike action, and I urge them to return to meaningful discussion now.

‘There is absolutely nothing to be gained from taking more strike action in the current tough economic climate, at a time when many Londoners have seen their pay frozen or have lost their jobs this year.

‘Our pay deal offers stability and security, and we urge all of our unions to recommend this fair and final offer to their members and urge all Tube staff to accept it.’

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London Underground calls on Unite leadership to end attempts to disrupt Londoners

Passengers will be angry and frustrated that train services will be slashed while First Capital Connect and staff are locked in battle over a pay deal.

The national passenger watchdog is arguing that passengers must be able to rely on the train timetable and called for parties involved to resolve the situation urgently.

Anthony Smith, Passenger Focus chief executive, said: “Passengers are being stretched in this tug of war between the train operating company, its staff and government and it is completely unacceptable that a public service is so reliant on staff working overtime and can be slashed in this way.

“It is passengers who suffer in the event of industrial action and we urge all parties to get round the table to keep talking and find a solution without the need for strikes.

“In the event of a strike, we want train operators to ensure that accurate and timely information is given to passengers so they can make an informed decision about their journey.”

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Passengers caught in rail tug of war

The ASLEF union has announced 6 consecutive strike days commencing from Monday 21 September on National Express East Anglia services, up to and including Saturday 26 September.

Talks are underway and continuing with ASLEF to avert this proposed strike action.

National Express East Anglia is developing an alternative timetable that would operate on the proposed strike days, in the event of this industrial action taking place. This timetable will be published on Tuesday 15 September on our website.

Andrew Chivers, Managing Director, National Express East Anglia commented:

“I am extremely disappointed that the ASLEF train drivers’ union has rejected our pay offer which amounts to a salary increase of at least 4% within a year, and announced a resumption of strike action from 21 September on National Express East Anglia services. Even though our offer has been accepted by the RMT and TSSA unions by over 80% votes in their ballots, ASLEF is planning to cause further unnecessary and totally unjustified disruption to our customers who have already suffered enough through the earlier series of strikes.”

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Proposed strike action by ASLEF train drivers from Monday 21 to Saturday 26 September inclusive