The RMT’s dangerous strikes are a cynical ploy to pave the way for rail renationalisation August 10, 2016 There is no general upsurge of industrial militancy in the UK: the latest figures show both numbers of stoppages and days lost to strikes remain low. The cluster of RMT actions – against Southern Railway/Govia Thameslink (now suspended), Virgin East Coast and Eurostar – will not be a harbinger of a new wave of damaging [...]
Southern Rail strike called off to allow for fresh negotiations August 10, 2016 The strike on Southern Rail has been called off to allow for fresh negotiations to take place. Acas said that the strike had been called off but Southern said services could still be affected tomorrow. "Southern and the RMT are returning to talks tomorrow under the auspices of Acas. Strike action has been suspended for Thursday [...]
Business groups hit out at RMT’s Eurostar strike August 10, 2016 The business community has slammed a union behind the strike scheduled to take place on Eurostar. The RMT union has said its members will strike from 12 to 15 and 27 to 29 August, while TSSA members will strike on 14, 15, 28 and 29 August. The news comes after RMT said its members on Virgin [...]
The train journey between London and Norwich is about to get faster, with a £1bn order for new trains August 10, 2016 The crawl between London and Norwich is about to be turbo charged (or at least get a little speedier), after the government gave the East Anglia rail franchise back to Abellio. In a statement today the government said its decision will cut travel times between Liverpool Street and Norwich, Cambridge and Peterborough by an average of [...]
Rail union RMT announces more strikes – this time on the Eurostar August 10, 2016 Rail union RMT has announced more industrial action, with Eurostar workers set to strike over seven days this month, including the Bank Holiday weekend – over their work/life balance. RMT said this morning that Eurostar train managers would strike for four days from 12.01am on Friday 12 August until 11.59pm on Monday 15 August, with a [...]
Sick of the strikes? Job-threatening technology could lead to even more industrial disputes August 10, 2016 The strike bringing misery to thousands of commuters on Southern’s railway line may be merely the start of a wider trend of industrial action throughout the UK. The RMT union has got its tail up and yesterday declared that workers on the Virgin east coast mainline have voted in favour of walkouts, while passenger groups are [...]
Virgin train workers have voted for strike, RMT says August 9, 2016 After the misery caused by the RMT strike on Southern Rail, workers on the Virgin trains have now voted for industrial action. Workers on Virgin East Coast have voted to strike in a dispute over jobs, working conditions and safety, the RMT rail union said. Read more: RMT offers to suspend Southern strike – if it [...]
Southern Rail strike: RMT offers to suspend industrial action if it gets what it wants August 9, 2016 The union striking on Southern Rail has offered to suspend its action – if it gets what it wants. The RMT union repeated offer to suspend Southern strike action around principles of ScotRail proposals and calls for urgent talks today. The union offered to suspend strikes on last Friday, but only if Southern meet the same [...]
Southern discomfort: Train operator only delivered 70 per cent of services on time August 9, 2016 The train operator at the centre of what is set to be the longest strike on the railways since the 1960s has seen the punctuality of its services plunge to just 70 per cent, new figures show. During July, Southern's operator Govia Thameslink only delivered 70 per cent of services on time across its franchises according [...]
Theresa May has blasted Southern Rail strikers for heaping fresh misery on commuters August 8, 2016 Prime Minister Theresa May has condemned Southern Rail strikers for heaping “misery” on commuters, while also insisting she wants to work with the franchise's owner to improve service. Southern Rail RMT members began a five day strike earlier today, arguing that passenger safety is being compromised by plans for train drivers, rather than guards, to [...]