Transport for London managed to avert a series of Tube strikes without offering a bonus pay rise to London Underground staff, it can be revealed.
This is in marked contrast to the £30m peace deal that London mayor Sadiq Khan struck with the RMT union to get a series of walkouts planned for the first week of January called off.
Strikes that were due to close the network on Thursday and next Tuesday, November 7 and 12, were called off by Aslef on Tuesday afternoon after talks with TfL.
This followed the RMT suspending an eight-day rolling strike that was to have started last Friday evening.
Prior to the strikes being called, all 16,500 Tube staff were in line for an average increase of 4.6 per cent, consisting of a 3.8 per cent basic rise plus a £450 lump sum.
Lower paid station staff, who can earn less than £30,000, are in line to receive the largest percentage increase, of about 7.8 per cent, while Tube drivers will get about 4.5 per cent, taking their salary to a reported £69,600.
The pay increase will be backdated to April but will not be paid until TfL concludes negotiations with all four unions – including the TSSA and Unite.
The negotiations are due to resume after union representatives meet on Thursday. It is understood that the unions are focusing on securing better working conditions for staff – for example, over “exhausting” shift patterns – in return for postponing the strikes.
There have also been concessions on pay bands, which it is thought will now rise in line with the proposed increase.
Precise details of the concessions being proposed by TfL have not been revealed by either side while negotiations continue.
Official statements from TfL, Aslef and the RMT referred to an improved “offer” – but The Standard was assured that this did not include extra cash.
Aslef, which represents 2,000 Tube drivers, wanted a “road map” towards the introduction of a 32-hour, four-day week.
It says a four-day week is standard across the national rail network, and available to drivers on the Elizabeth line and London Overground, both of which are overseen by TfL using contracts with private operators. In contrast, TfL employs London Underground staff directly.
According to Aslef, Tube drivers work “more days per week and longer hours than drivers on the Elizabeth line or London Overground for less money”.
Aslef said it was able to suspend its two one-day strikes – which would have shut the Tube – because it was happy that sufficient progress had been made in talks with TfL.
Prior to the talks on Tuesday, Aslef’s London organiser Finn Brennan told The Standard that he was “not optimistic” that the strikes could be averted.
He said on Tuesday evening: “Following fresh talks, and an improved offer, Aslef has agreed to suspend our planned industrial action on London Underground.
“Details of the offer will be discussed with our reps at a meeting on Thursday. We are pleased that this progress has been made and that strike action has been averted at this time.”
Claire Mann, TfL’s chief operating officer, said: “We are pleased that Aslef has suspended its planned industrial action on the Tube and that Londoners will not be disrupted this week or next.
“We believe that we have made an offer to our trade unions that is fair, affordable, good for our colleagues and good for London and we urge our trade unions to continue working with us.”
Last Friday, the RMT said: “Following intense negotiations with London Underground management and a significantly improved offer, we have suspended the strikes scheduled to start this evening.
"London Underground have sensibly abandoned their proposed changes to pay structures which now means all our members will receive the same value in any pay award.
"Further discussions will take place next week regarding the pay offer but progress has been made which would not have been possible without the fortitude and industrial strength of our 10,000 members on London Underground."
In February, Mr Khan agreed a deal with the unions for a five per cent increase plus a lump sum of up to £1,400.
This gave the lowest paid Tube staff an 11 per cent increase.
But the mayor’s Tory critics accused him of “giving in to union blackmail” and warned it would fuel more pay demands.
The £30m deal was funded by business rates and council tax.
