UK strikes: Month of rail chaos begins with first 48 hours of action as walkout looms for nursing mothers
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Those traveling across Britain today are being warned to expect major disruption as 48-hour national rail strikes enter their second day.
Only one in five trains is expected to run today, adding to commuters’ travel woes ahead of the Christmas period.
Many industries are set to stage their own strikes this month and Royal Mail staff are joining rail workers who are walking out today.
Around 40,000 workers from Network Rail and 14 train operating companies are taking part in the December and January walkouts, planned to cause as much disruption as possible as passengers try to get around over the holidays.
The strikes continued after members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union rejected a 9 per cent pay rise offered by Network Rail.
Mick Lynch, RMT general secretary, said there was overwhelming support for strike action, while accusing former transport minister Grant Shapps of blocking a settlement of the six-month rail dispute.
He told The Independent: “I think Grant Shapps still has a hand in it because they [the cabinet] take a ‘tour’ about the proposals.’
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Avanti West Coast trains train drivers to vote on strike
Avanti West Coast train drivers are to be voted for industrial action in line over lists.
Aslef accused the company of imposing new work models without an agreement.
General secretary Mick Whelan said: “I can hear the chickens coming home to roost.
“Avanti West Coast has never employed enough drivers to deliver the services it promised to passengers, businesses and the government it would operate, which is why every day this year the company has fallen behind.
“Earlier this year, in the summer, Avanti tried to accuse drivers of taking ‘unofficial strike action’ which it knew was not true.
“Now the company has been caught out again for trying to run its West Coast Main Line services on the cheap – cheating staff, passengers and taxpayers – to line the pockets of its shareholders. It’s a shame.
“If he had done the right thing and hired enough drivers, as we keep asking him to do, he wouldn’t have had the problems that have been going on all this year.
“Now the company, to try and cover up its own inadequacies, is trying to impose lists on drivers without going through the proper and agreed process.”
Alan Jones December 14, 2022 3:49 pm
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The minister claimed it was “up to the unions” if northern train services improved
“It’s up to the unions to decide” whether they want train services in the north of England to improve, according to Transport Secretary Mark Harper.
The cabinet minister said he had given TransPennine Express and Northern “the scope they need to deliver a meaningful and generous” offer of day off work to drivers’ union Aslef.
Thousands of services have been canceled in the region at short notice in recent months.
Much of the disruption has been caused by workers no longer volunteering to do paid shifts on their days off, amid a crisis in industrial relations in the sector.
In a statement to parliament, Mr Harper wrote: “Aslef must enter into negotiations and offer any new deal to its members and, if accepted, do everything possible to make that deal work.
“TransPennine made a generous revised offer to Aslef and it was almost immediately rejected without being made available to members.
“It is up to the unions to decide if they want to improve services for the good of passengers and the wider economy of the North.”
Mr. Harper said he supported “completely ending the reliance of the railroads on the holiday.”
He added: “No modern and successful business relies on the goodwill of its staff to deliver to its customers in the evenings and weekends.
“I want a railroad with rewarding jobs, with a contract to deliver every service promised to the public.”
Neil Lansfield December 14, 2022 3:17 pm
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Rail union announces new strike dates
A rail union has announced further strikes by two train operators in the days after Christmas.
The Transport Staff Association (TSSA) has said around 700 of its members at West Midlands Trains (WMT) and Great Western Railway (GWR) will walk out in an ongoing dispute over pay, work and conditions.
The strike at GWR is taking place for 24 hours from midday on Wednesday 28 December and at WMT for 24 hours from midday on Wednesday 28 December.
In the case of WMT, this cancels and replaces a previously planned strike on 17 December.
Non-strike action will take place until early January at both companies.
The TSSA requires a guarantee of no forced redundancies, no unapproved changes to terms and conditions, and a pay increase that matches the rising cost of living.
TSSA organizing director Nadine Ray said: “Our members at West Midlands Trains and Great Western Railway do not want to strike, particularly over the Christmas holidays, but they are fed up with being taken for granted.
“They deserve a pay rise to help them cope with the rising cost of living, and they rightly demand job security. Train operators under the control of the Department for Transport must face up to the fact that only serious offers that meet our aspirations will end this dispute.
“Railway workers are basically looking for fair treatment: not to be fired from their jobs; a fair pay rise in a cost-of-living crisis; and no race to the bottom in terms of conditions.
“To date the strike action these members have taken has been very effective and will be again with even more trains stopping unless rail bosses and the Government do the right thing for our members and our valuable rail network on which so many people rely on.”
Alan Jones, Pennsylvania Industry Correspondent December 14, 2022 2:38 pm
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The Eurostar strikes were called off
Planned strikes by Eurostar security guards this week have been called off.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union employed by contractor Mitie were due to walk out on Friday and Sunday in a pay dispute.
Talks over pay are ongoing and there will be further strikes next week if the dispute is not resolved.
Mitie said there are contingency plans in place if the action continues.
An RMT spokesman said: “The union has suspended planned strikes this week to allow Mitie security members to take part in a referendum on the company’s latest offer, which will close on December 19. The strikes for December 22 and 23 next week continue at the moment.”
Eurostar indicated that none of its employees were involved in the dispute. The workers involved are Mitie security staff at London’s St Pancras terminal on Eurostar.
Alan Jones, Pennsylvania Industry Correspondent December 14, 2022 2:03 pm
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What are the rail workers’ demands against the current offer on the table?
Network Rail bosses have been in intense talks since the RMT called the latest strike, which also includes other unions.
On 4 December, Network Rail made an offer. Members of the Unite union accepted it and those employees called off planned strike action. But the RMT put the deal to a referendum of its members with a recommendation that it be rejected.
The RMT announced on December 12 that 63.6 per cent of members (on an 83 per cent turnout) had rejected the latest pay offer from Network Rail.
Read our guide to everything we know about the deal proposed by Network Rail, why it was rejected and what members of the RMT union want:
Simon Calder December 14, 2022 1:32 pm
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The Bakerloo and Overground lines have been suspended in London
It may not be an official Tube strike today, but parts of TfL’s London network are still experiencing disruption.
There is no service on the Bakerloo line between Queen’s Park and Harrow & Wealdstone; while on London Overground, there is no service between Barking and Barking Riverside, and Romford and Upminster, due to strike action.
There is also currently no Overground service between Watford Junction and Harrow & Wealdstone, TfL says, “while we repair the signal failure at Carpenders Park”.
The District Line has no service between Turnham Green and Richmond due to the strikes.
The Elizabeth line has long delays between Paddington and Reading and between Liverpool Street and Shenfield. On strike days, Elizabeth Line trains only operate between 7.30am and 5.30pm between Liverpool Street NR station and Shenfield and Paddington NR station to Heathrow / Reading.
Unrelated to the strikes, the Central Line saw severe delays due to an earlier fire warning; while the Circle, Hammersmith & City, Waterloo & City, Tram and Piccadilly lines are seeing minor delays as we head into Wednesday afternoon.
Here’s the full breakdown of the disruption TfL is expecting on strike days this week:
Lucy Thackray December 14, 2022 12:48 pm
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Canceled trains add to rail strike woes
Trains run on around half of Britain’s rail network during limited hours – usually 7.30am to 6.30pm – with around 30 per cent of normally scheduled services.
Most trains run smoothly, not least because traffic jams are much less significant than on normal days.
But across the country, various issues are causing additional cancellations.
Several trains from London King’s Cross to Letchworth in Hertfordshire were canceled “at the request of the train operator”.
Train faults caused the cancellation between London Waterloo – the UK’s busiest station – and Windsor.
In the West Midlands, some local services between Birmingham New Street and Northampton were delayed by an hour or more, leading to cancellations.
CrossCountry had delays between Leeds, Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Some local services to and from Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow…
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