London Tube workers vote to strike

London Underground staff are set to walk out for 72 hours next week after they voted “four to one” in favour of strike action.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers union (RMT) said its workers would cease work at 4pm on 24 April and not return until after 4pm on 27 April.

The dispute is between employees of Tube Lines – a former public private partnership company – and Transport for London (TfL).

TfL bought Tube Lines in 2010 but have refused to give staff at the former private company the same pension scheme and free travel benefits as the majority of Tube staff.

Tube Lines staff provide maintenance services for the Northern, Jubilee and Piccadilly lines.

Bob Crow, the leader of the RMT, said: “This dispute is about justice and about ensuring that all groups of staff under the umbrella of London Underground receive the same rights and benefits and our members have no choice but to strike to secure those basic rights.”

“We have gone through all the negotiating channels but Tube Lines has refused to budge and have refused to engage in meaningful talks and that pig-headed approach has raised the temperature on the shop floor and has resulted in this strike action being called.”