There will be more train strikes at the start of October after the Aslef and RMT unions confirmed that staff across the rail industry will go on strike on Saturday 1st October, and train drivers will also strike on Wednesday 5th October.
The train drivers previously took strike action on 30th July and 13th August, but both unions say more strikes are happening after the train companies didn’t improve their offer.
The Aslef strikes will take place on Saturday 1st and Wednesday 5th October — and as with previous strikes, expect some disruption in the evening before, and more disruption in the morning after until around 9am.
The RMT has also announced a strike on Saturday 1st October.
Mick Whelan, General Secretary, has commented to the media this morning, saying “We would much rather not be in this position. We don’t want to go on strike – withdrawing our labour, although a fundamental human right, is always a last resort for this trade union – but the train companies have been determined to force our hand.”
Aslef train drivers will be on strike at 12 companies:
- Avanti West Coast
- Chiltern Railways
- CrossCountry
- Greater Anglia
- Great Western Railway (GWR)
- Hull Trains
- LNER
- London Overground
- Northern Trains
- Southeastern
- TransPennine Express
- West Midlands Trains
The RMT strike will take place on at the following companies.
- Network Rail
- Avanti West Coast
- c2c
- Chiltern Railways
- Cross Country Trains
- Greater Anglia
- East Midlands Railway
- Great Western Railway (GWR)
- LNER
- London Overground (Arriva Rail London)
- Northern Trains
- Southeastern
- South Western Railway
- Transpennine Express
- West Midlands Trains
- GTR (including Gatwick Express)
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said: “The strikes are not in the long-term interests of rail workers or building a sustainable rail industry. We want to give our people a pay rise, but without the reforms we are proposing, we simply cannot deliver pay increases. Revenue is still around 80% of pre-pandemic levels, no business can survive that scale of upheaval without implementing change.”
Updated 2:20pm – added just announced RMT strike for 1st October.
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said: “The strikes are not in the long-term interests of rail workers or building a sustainable rail industry. We want to give our people a pay rise, but without the reforms we are proposing, we simply cannot deliver pay increases.
I know it may be commercially sensitive, but this has been going nearly 2 years.
I wish they’d publish The demands of the RDG v the workers and get the Transport minister directly involved.
I’ve worked as a contractor for NR and some of the proposed changes by the company to reduce costs of changing 3 man working down to 2 man or 1 man with no banksman working look dangerous.
The last thing that’s needed is for the minister to get involved. They would simply be throwing petrol onto the fire.
Shapps was awful – even telling downright lies at times – and I don’t see the new one being any better.
Rail staff earns more money than average people. Do you work for £9.50 an hour???!?
I don’t think so
The average train conductor salary in the United Kingdom is £26,612 per year or £13.65 per hour. Entry level positions start at £25,921 per year while most experienced workers make up to £31,326 per year.
Ad if you been redundant there is lot of position to fill up take away drivers, working in feels.
Give job to emigrants they will be happy to receive this money. English just wants more money and be manager. Shame on you get off your ass on the train and don’t complain you bustards
According to the ONS, in 2021 the average UK salary was £31,772 for a full-time role.
So when you say an experienced train conductor, on up to £31,326 is earning more than the average person — you’re wrong.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours
Rail workers have no consideration for the people……
Rail workers are striking for two reasons. ASLEF want a better rate of pay, but everyone else ( except a few TOCS) earn far less than a driver, and are facing terms and conditions which make any offers worthless but mainly they are facing over 2400 job losses in order to make those T&C’s “ work” . They have tried talking to management and asked the Government to get involved which they have refused. Enough is enough and action is the only answer.
They care more about the people than the TOCS and government do.
In the past it was unions that campaigned for and got things like sufficient rest periods for railway workers. Tired drivers and signallers and maintenance staff are prone to make mistakes and in an industry where even a minor crash can cause severe injuries I’d rather not have a tired driver thank you very much.
It’s the unions that have been telling the TOCs for years that there was looming driver number issue. Something many of the TOCs simply ignored because recruiting and training drivers costs time and money. And there isn’t a massive Shapps Army of route certified Agency staff available to step in.
Well the TOCs decisions have now come home to roost because they don’t have sufficient drivers to run their contracted services.
You cannot run an almost 24/7 365 service relying on voluntary overtime.
Remember the chaos a few years ago when the new Thameslink timetable went into meltdown? That was the result of the TOCS being unable to train their drivers on the new trains and routes because there was little or no spare driver capacity to run the current service and enable other drivers to be released for training.
Rolling block signals and A.i.t could well see trains with no drivers ?? Just as we now see ship yards with no shipwright forget about CO2 coal mines with no coal miners.Now we have office blocks with no office workers ? 2/3 of Dagenham car plant given over to housing. Presendent Carter sack all the
Air traffic controllers a d had them replying for their old jobs back. Yes we all need more money :- but your payrise is someone else’s job
Richard
Please get your facts right.
It was Ronald Reagan who sacked all the air traffic controllers. And it took months for services to be fully restored leading to the cancellation of thousands of flights. And no the ones that were fired couldn’t apply for their jobs back because Reagan imposed a life time ban on them.
As to automated trains please tell us where the tens of bllions it would cost to install it is going to come from?
And how we could cope with years of disruption to allow it to be installed? This isn’t sometthing can can be done on the odd weekend closure.
I just don’t get it all these strike the train tickets have gone up. The train drivers are on more than me but they are stopping me from going to work or pay more money to get to work as I pay for a monthly so instead of £110 pound a month just from Croydon to Clapham junction. With the strike costing me extra money. It’s a joke live on what I get paid then pay extra cos some companies want more money don’t we all. Going on strike is not working don’t like the job find another one cos your messing around with people life and money for train driver to start and stop a train your sat on your ass.
The RDG is very keen to focus on the changing work patterns as the cause for a reduction in passenger numbers.I haven’t heard very much about management initiatives to grow the revenue.The train product simply isn’t good enough for the leisure market and every aspect needs to be reviewed.The financial bottom line is not just about costs but also revenue.I wouldn’t take the train from London to Edinburgh as the noise levels and seat design would put me off.That is a job for management not the Union.
Please be careful what you say ASTÀ if sounds racist, to be Frank, English don’t just drive trains, it is mixed incorporating all sorts of nationalities. The strike is course is a pain, and don’t agree with it, the huge disruption, but it is a democracy and they are entitled to strike irrespective of the circumstances, so find out the detailed facts first, and stop insulting the English. Like every culture, many of us work incredibly hard You may need to check your spelling next time.
This train strike is been going on for a long while if drivers cannot come to agreement they need to resign and quickly job it is causing so much stress and chaos for everyone else who actually has to commute to work or go and family of visit people I can understand why I’m trying to trace Road plus train tickets and cost of travelling it is a very very high and then you guys are still wanna strike if you can’t come to agreement you guys should be sacked and I’m sure they’ll be a lot of other people who want to take your job how comes we don’t have this problem in Germany or any other country in Europe England because you guys are too lean back and everyone wants you get rich if you want to get rich work more hours earn more money get a life but why f****** calls a chaos for London transport