Rail operating companie set to be hit with further strike action next month after the RMT and Aslef unions formally rejected pay offers.
Two of Britain’s biggest transport unions have called fresh strikes in May, including on the days of the Eurovision Song Contest and FA Cup finals. The strikes have called after the rail workers rejected the latest pay deal from train operators.
The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), which has over 83,000 members from practically every sector of the British transport industry, has announced that 16 train operators would go on strike on Saturday, May 13. On the same day, Liverpool will host the main Eurovision contest on behalf of Ukraine, which is at war with Russia.
The RMT stated that the train operators had “torpedoed” the bargaining process, while the operators’ side (the Rail Delivery Group) maintained that the strike had caught them off guard.
Aside from the RMT, the Aslef railway drivers’ union has announced strikes on May 12, May 31, and June 3, the day of the FA Cup final.
What do workers want?
Workers want greater wages to counteract Britain’s rising inflation. This entails a one-year wage increase followed by a two-year pay increase. The RMT members want a “negotiated settlement,” although they haven’t said how much they want to paid more.
What do train operators want?
Train operators would accept some of the demands of transport unions if such unions did not exist.
According to a statement made by the union, “Following further discussions between the union and RDG [Rail Delivery Group], the employer issued a clarification on the offer RMT has been considering.”
“The RDG has now stated that they will only implement the first-year payment of 5% if the union terminates its industrial mandate, implying that no further strike action will permitted.”
“Stage 2 discussions, which part of the offer made by the employer, would then have to begin without the union having any industrial leverage at the negotiating table.”
