Union leaders have accused the government of “inflaming” tensions over the rail dispute that is due to see widespread strikes beginning tonight.
Services on the railways and London Underground will be crippled from midnight in the biggest walkout in the industry for more than 30 years in a row over pay, jobs and conditions.
The TUC is calling on the Westminster government to adopt a positive role in the dispute, saying it was “inflaming tensions” with comments such as threatening to “revoke” workers’ legal rights.
Meanwhile, Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the RMT union, said the group did not want to be the cause of disruption for travellers but the industry was facing thousands of job cuts, as well as a long working week.
He said the union had no choice but to act after the train operators had still not made a pay offer when talks adjourned on Thursday.
But the transport secretary hit out at the industrial action on Sunday, saying it was “no way to behave on the railway”.
Grant Shapps said this was a “huge mistake” and accused the unions of “gunning for this strike”.
Train strikes could continue into autumn
Industrial action on the railways could stretch into autumn, unions have warned.
Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT union, told the i newspaper that there “doesn’t seem to be much evidence at the moment that it’s going to go any other way”.
“The TSSA [union], which represents about 6000 Network Rail staff is balloting, Aslef, which along with us organises train drivers has about six or seven ballots being returned on July 11 – just a few weeks away. If there’s no settlement I can only see this escalating,” he said.
Meanwhile, a union source told the Telegraph that the RMT had a “mandate for strike action for six months”.
Helen Coffey20 June 2022 08:40
Which trains are running during the strike?
During the planned nationwide rail strikes for three dates in late June, only 22 per cent of passenger train services will run – most of them on key links to and from London.
Only around half of Britain’s rail network will be open on strike days, from around 7.30am until 6.30pm.
At Network Rail, the infrastructure provider, the most critical roles in the day-to-day running of the railway are 5,000 signallers.
Management and other staff are expected to cover about half the network for about 11 hours per day. Many lines will see no trains.
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