The train drivers’ union, Aslef, has embarked on the latest round of industrial action in its long and bitter dispute with 14 English train operators over pay, jobs and working conditions. Drivers walked out on Saturday 30 September and will do the same on Wednesday 4 October, triggering the cancellation of thousands of trains on each day and wrecking millions of planned journeys.
In addition the union has imposed an overtime ban until Friday 6 October – disrupting rail travel for over a week. The strikes are timed to hit the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, which began on Sunday 1 October – the day after the first walk-out – and ends on Wednesday 4 October, the day of the second stoppage.
Mick Whelan, the general secretary of Aslef, said: “We have a government that’s not interested in rail, that’s clearly only interested in road and air, that doesn’t care about the travelling public, doesn’t care about disabled people, wants to close the ticket offices.
“What they want us to do is take a 20 per cent pay cut and give up all our terms and conditions.”
In response, a Department for Transport (DfT) spokesperson said: “The government spent £31bn of taxpayers’ money – £1,000 per household – to protect rail workers’ jobs during the pandemic.
“There is a fair and reasonable offer on the table that would take train drivers salaries from £60,000 to £65,000. Aslef’s leaders won’t put this offer to their members and instead continue to strike – damaging their own industry in the process.”
A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, representing train operators, said : “Further strike action by the Aslef leadership will cause more disruption to passengers.
“We want to give our staff a pay increase, but it has always been linked to implementing necessary, sensible reforms that would enhance services for our passengers.
“We ask the Aslef leadership and executive to recognise the very real financial challenge the industry is facing and work with us to deliver a more reliable and robust railway for the future.”
Caught in the middle of the dispute, the long-suffering passenger. This Q&A aims to explain what lies behind the conflict and the likely impact of the forthcoming strikes.
When did the industrial action start?
The first national rail strikes since the 1980s began in June 2022. The unions…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at The Independent Travel…