Chaos on the tube as RMT announce seven-day rolling strike
Tube union RMT has announced rolling strikes on the London Underground and DLR next month in a dispute over pay, conditions and ‘broken agreements’.
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The union said the strikes on the Underground network will begin on Friday September 5, and members will initially walk out for seven days.
Different grades of workers will strike on different days, and it is yet unclear how badly tube services will be affected.
Meanwhile, workers on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) will also be striking starting September 7, in a separate dispute over pay and conditions.
The walkout comes after management ‘refused to engage seriously’ with union demands on pay, fatigue management, extreme shift patterns and a reduction in the working week, as well as ‘failing to honour previous agreements made with staff’, according to the RMT.
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The Rail, Maritime and Transport workers union (RMT) union, which is the largest specialist transport union in the country, said management’s ‘dismissive’ approach has “fuelled widespread anger and distrust among the workforce”.
It says its members voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action.
The strikes are expected to bring severe disruption to the capital’s transport network, as the RMT represents around 18,000 employees working in London.
RMT General Secretary Eddie Dempsey said: “Our members are doing a fantastic job to keep our capital moving and work strenuous shift patterns to make sure Londoners get to their destinations around the clock.
"They are not after a King's ransom, but fatigue and extreme shift rotations are serious issues impacting on our members health and wellbeing- all of which have not been adequately addressed for years by LU management.
"Coupled with the fact there are outstanding issues around staff travel arrangements, an atmosphere of distrust has been created, where our members feel like no one is listening to them.
"RMT will continue to engage LU management with a view to seeking a revised offer in order to reach a negotiated settlement."
A TfL spokesperson said: “We regularly meet with our trade unions to discuss any concerns that they may have, and we recently met with the RMT to discuss some specific points.
"We are committed to ensuring our colleagues are treated fairly and, as well as offering a 3.4 per cent pay increase in our ongoing pay discussions, we have made progress on a number of commitments we have made previously.
"We welcome further engagement with our unions about fatigue and rostering across London Underground, but a reduction in the contractual 35-hour working week is neither practical nor affordable.
“Given the improvements we have recently put in place in response to concerns raised by our unions, we urge the RMT to put our fair, affordable pay offer to their members and to continue to engage with us rather than threaten strike action, which will only disrupt Londoners.”