Protect jobs, pay and conditions for current and future generations
RMT member in West Midlands
“I haven’t spent over 40 years working on the railway to give away my terms and conditions for a few pounds,” is how one Train Operating Company (TOC) employee responded to the latest ‘best and final offer’ from the employers.
In the past, RMT rail union members would be offered some money when asked to give up terms and conditions, otherwise known as ‘productivity’. This time we are being asked to give up pages and pages of hard-won rights in return for a two-year pay cut!
While they have taken driver-only operation off the table (for now), it is clear that the railway employers have done a ‘shopping list’.
All of the legacy agreements going back decades – rights which make the railway a better place to work than many others, rules which prevent the bosses from having total control over every minute of every day – are for the chop.
In addition to this, the employers wish to instigate a permanent cut in the pay of new entrants.
Other ‘highlights’ include a continued commitment to shut every booking office, trainee guards on reduced pay for four years before reaching the full salary (which will be permanently lower than established staff), and a decimation of rostering agreements.
We must make it clear that we reject any division, and that we stand for the protection of jobs, pay and conditions for current and future generations.
The government is weak; they know their time is nearly up. More and more sections of workers are balloting for strike action.
The pressure on the Tories continues to rise, and they know that if they are seen to give in to one section of workers, others will gain the confidence to demand their share.
The trade unions are gaining in strength and can put it to best use by coordinating strikes up to and including a 24-hour general strike.
We support the coordinated strike on 1 February, which involves RMT train drivers alongside Aslef drivers, education staff in NEU and UCU, and civil servants in PCS.
The Tories are moving their budget on 15 March and NEU has already called a national strike that day. We and all the other unions should look to strike with them.
Reject this dreadful offer and name more strike dates.
