The rail union, the RMT says that it is rejecting the latest pay and conditions offer from both Network Rail and the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents the train operating companies – describing the offer as “dreadful”.
The RMT management said that they have decided to reject both offers on the basis that they do not meet members expectations on pay, job security or working conditions.
Network Rail and the RDG have previously said that their proposals are their “best and final” offers.
The RMT has also made it clear that it is seeking an unconditional pay offer, a job security agreement and no detrimental changes being imposed on members terms, conditions and working practices.
There’s a change in tone, as the RMT now says that a pay offer has to be “unconditional”, whereas the rail companies and government are seeking to link pay awards to efficiencies in running the railway.
The RMT confirmed that it will seek further meetings with Network Rail and RDG in order to work towards a negotiated settlement, but in the meantime will begin to make preparations for a re-ballot when the existing strike mandate runs out in May.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “We have carried out an in-depth consultation of our 40,000 members and the message we have received loud and clear is to reject these dreadful offers.”
“Our members cannot accept the ripping up of their terms and conditions or to have safety standards on the railway put into jeopardy under the guise of so-called modernisation.”
“If our union did accept these offers, we would see a severe reduction in scheduled maintenance tasks, making the railways less safe, the closure of all ticket offices and thousands of jobs stripped out of the industry when the railways need more investment not less.
For their part, a spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, which represents the train operating companies said ““Having listened to the union’s concerns during recent negotiations, we went back to the table with substantial changes to give colleagues a minimum pay increase of at least 9% over two years – rising to over 13% for the lowest paid – which they will now miss out on without even having had an opportunity to have their say. We removed driver only operation and gave an improved job security offer.”
“The railway’s financial crisis is not going away. We remain willing to engage, but the RMT leadership must now accept the urgent need to make the railway fit for the future for both our people, and the communities the railway serves.”
RDG, RMT should discuss this in the open, televised with representatives from Government (Mark Harper), Mick Lynch, lawyers and maybe some laypeople in public. This nonsense has gone on long enough.
They won’t do that. If the general public find out about what they get away with as “working practices” they RMT would not have the (small, it seems) public support they do.
I support the RDG and RMT 100% and anybody else that strikes for better pay and conditions the privatised industries can pay out millions to there shares holders but cannot give there workers a decent pay increase and public sector workers are treated like slaves and have been under valued and under paid bythis government since they came into power
You do realise that Network Rail and most of the train companies are state owned?
Frank – RDG is the Rail Delivery Group and isn’t is trade union.
It’s the umbrella organisation for the EMPLOYERS.
You can support the RDG or the Unions but not both.
Considering they’ve got to re-ballot their members when the existing strike mandate expires you’d have thought they should have put this offer to their members, instead of just rejecting it.
Maybe the unions were afraid that many of their members would have accepted it, rather than losing more pay due to strike days. Equally they know if the network rail dispute is resolved their other railway strikes would cause less disruption.
Although I’m badly affected by the strikes, I fully support their right to strike. Interesting how outrage is fuelled for workers getting perks and good pay, but downplayed for those in power receiving hundreds of thousands in donations, payments in kind and kickbacks while coincidentally wasting billions of (our) public money on useless projects run by people linked to those donations etc.