Most train services in the UK will be canceled on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays due to disputes over fares and terms. Only one skeleton service will operate on the main lines and around urban areas. London Underground workers will also be on strike for 24 hours on Tuesday, disrupting the capital’s transport system. RMT Secretary-General Mick Lynch said the rail dispute could not be resolved without the government lifting the shackles on Network Rail and train companies. All parts of the rail industry, as well as transporters to London, have said they will save money by lowering fares after Covid. But Transport Secretary Grand Saps said the talks remained a matter for employers. He said the strikes were “orchestrated by some of the highest paid union barons in the country, representing some of the highest paid workers in the country, which will cause misery and chaos to millions of migrants”. RMT said a pay-as-you-go offer was made by train companies in the last talks on Monday, which is believed to have been around 2-3%, with committed commitments and no guarantees of mandatory redundancies. The union rejected the offer and a similar proposal from Network Rail on Friday. Lynch said the bids were unacceptable, adding: “What we have learned is that the dead hand of this Tory government is all this controversy – and Grant Shapps’s fingerprints and Rishi Sunak DNA are all above the problem. on the railroad, and in fact in this society. “ He said the source of the controversy was the government’s decision to “cut 4 4 billion in funding from the national railways and the TfL οντας forcing companies to austerity… and preventing a settlement”. “Until employers are allowed to negotiate freely, I can not see that we will reach a settlement. Our campaign will run as long as necessary until we reach a settlement acceptable to our people,” Lynch said. Asked if the labor action could last months differently, Lynch said: “I think it will, yes.” However, he said RMT remained available for chats during the week. Network Rail said a larger pay rise – albeit well below the current RPI inflation rate of 11% – would be possible if linked to upgrading maintenance and inventory. Andrew Haines, CEO of Network Rail, said: “No strike is inevitable until it starts. But, unfortunately, the inconvenience tomorrow is guaranteed, so we ask passengers to plan in advance and travel only by train if necessary. “We continue to talk to RMT and urge them to work with us to find a solution that works for railway workers and taxpayers and avoids causing further inconvenience to our passengers.” The train operators said they were “very disappointed” that the union rejected their latest offer. Steve Montgomery, president of the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), said: “With passengers still at around 80% of pre-pandemic levels, the industry remains committed to a fair wage agreement. more than the fair share of taxpayers. “This can only be achieved by making improvements – such as offering better services on Sunday – that reflect the changing needs of passengers, in order to attract more back.” RDG reported that the collective salary of train operators increased from 3, 3.1 billion in 2017-18 to 6 3.6 billion in 2019-20, partly due to increased staffing levels, and that the government had supported the industry with an additional 16 billion the pandemic. Speaking to the Commons, Saps said: “We will leave that to the employers, who are the right people to negotiate with the unions.” However, he added: “The industry needs to change.” “We are not imposing wage freezes. But let me be clear, for modernization and reform to work, we must have unions that are prepared to modernize, otherwise there can be no agreement,” Saps said. A YouGov poll conducted by RDG found that about 25% of voters supported RMT’s action, while 39% did not. The absence of traffic lights from the Network Rail will have the greatest impact among the 40,000 striking workers, including crew and station staff from 13 train companies. The strike will cut off traffic for six days, with a later start and reduced travel on non-strike days, leaving most of Wales, Scotland, rural North England and the south-west without trains for much of the week. TfL has advised you to avoid traveling on all of its flights on Tuesday, with virtually no subway trains, and London Underground buses and trains that could cause traffic jams and problems.
