RMT General Secretary Mick Lynch Image caption: RMT General Secretary Mick Lynch
The strike was called off by the National Union of Railway, Shipping and Transport Workers, and includes all members, from security guards and traffic police to caterers and cleaners.
The union says workers – many of whom have continued to work throughout the pandemic – have suffered real pay cuts and are now facing a cost-of-life crisis.
He accused the government of preventing railway companies from trading freely for pay.
The union also disagrees with Network Rail plans to cut 2,500 maintenance jobs as it seeks to save 2 2 billion over the next two years.
Network Rail says it will offer a wage increase of more than 3%, but only if the union agrees to modernize work practices.
Its chief negotiator, Tim Shoveller, says about 1,800 jobs were expected to be cut, but the “vast majority” will be through “voluntary redundancies and physical waste.”
He insists he will not consider any changes that would make the railways less secure and that modernization is needed.
ReutersCopyright: Reuters
The government says it is up to the railway companies to negotiate.
But Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned that commuters must be prepared to “stay on track”, insisting that rail reforms are in the interest of the commuter.
Downing Street says 16 16 billion in taxpayer money was used to support the railways during the Covid pandemic, but with passenger numbers still down by a fifth and many companies adopting the hybrid operation, modernization is needed to prevent ticket prices from rising and institutions from collapsing.
