London Midland
Train drivers working for London Midland are to vote on a package to end a long dispute over harmonisation of pay and leave entitlement. Their union Aslef will ballot members after a strike vote was first challenged in the high court, where an injunction stopped strike action. An appeal overturned the injunction, a new strike ballot was held because the earlier vote was out of time and the new vote saw a bigger vote for action. This seemed to concentrate management minds, along with the lack of volunteers to work Sundays and no rest-day working agreement.
The offer is for pay to be harmonised with a 5% pay rise from April 2011. Leave will be harmonised at 30 days a year from April 2011. There will be pay rises in 2012 of 3% or February Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus a quarter per cent, and in 2013 3% or RPI plus half a per cent, whichever is greater in both cases.
Harmonisation of leave for 2011 is complicated by shortage of staff so drivers whose leave is increasing will be paid four days extra pay this year. Talks are to take place with Aslef to reduce the reliance on overtime working. So the union will play a constructive part in more jobs being created.
National action ballot across civil service
Workers at the Driving Standards Agency were balloted for strike action when a programme of office closures and job cuts was announced. 2,000 civil service union PCS members were balloted and 62% voted for strike action on a 43% turnout.
When the strike dates were announced by the union, involving admin and driving test staff, management offered concessions on the office closures and agreed to suspend compulsory redundancy notices until March 2012. This was enough for the union to suspend the strikes.
Battles against cuts and closures are also going on in the Department for Work and Pensions, the Home Office, the Equality and Human Rights Commission and other sections of the civil service. Therefore the PCS national executive is putting a resolution to the union’s conference in May, calling for a national ballot in defence of jobs, pensions and pay and for the union to continue to work with other trade unions to coordinate the action for maximum impact.The resolution urges all members and activists to prioritise mobilising for a ‘yes, yes’ vote.
