A planned strike of over 40,000 workers at Network Rail and more than a dozen train companies will go ahead next week, after the latest talks broke down.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at 14 train operating companies and Network Rail will go on strike on Wednesday 27 July in a dispute about pay, jobs and conditions.
There will also be a stoppage by members of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) who work for the Avanti West Coast firm on the same day.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Strike action will take place next Wednesday as planned and our members are more determined than ever to secure a decent pay rise, job security and good working conditions.
“Network Rail have not made any improvement on their previous pay offer and the train companies have not offered us anything new.
“In fact Network Rail have upped the ante, threatening to impose compulsory redundancies and unsafe 50% cuts to maintenance work if we did not withdraw our planned strike action.
“The train operating companies have put driver-only operations on the table along with ransacking our members’ terms and conditions.
“RMT will continue to negotiate in good faith but we will not be bullied or cajoled by anyone.
“The government need to stop their interference in this dispute so the rail employers can come to a negotiated settlement with us.”
Network Rail accused the union of “walking away” from talks that could have avoided the strike, rejecting a two-year 8% deal with a guarantee on no compulsory redundancies.
The RMT strike will come just over a month since three days of industrial action in June.
Tim Shoveller, Network Rail’s lead negotiator, said: “Once again the RMT executive has walked away from ongoing and constructive talks that could have avoided next week’s strike and it’s now abundantly clear that their political campaign is taking precedence over representing their members’ interests.”
Transport for London (TfL) services will be affected by disruption as it uses sections of track that comes under Network Rail’s jurisdiction.
Further disruption is likely on Thursday with a later start to services as signalling staff return to work.
A Department for Transport spokesperson called it a “cynically timed attempt to derail the start of the Commonwealth Games”.
They added: “The rail industry has to modernise and be brought into the 21st century for the benefit of passengers and staff. We’re extremely disappointed to see that, instead of staying at the table, RMT executives have chosen to walk away once more. We continue to encourage RMT to do the right thing by their members and passengers alike and call off the strikes.”
