Train drivers and railway workers will stage another wave of industrial action which will likely cause more disruptions to Britain's rail network.
Aslef members at 15 train companies will stage a 24-hour walkout while members of the RMT union will also stage a strike at 14 train operators. Both unions will be striking together on February 1 alongside 100,000 civil servants and tens of thousands of teachers.
Members of the RMT union will also stage another walkout on February 3.
Read more: Man and woman linked to Manchester's notorious Waterloo Gang jailed after turf war shootings
Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT, said: “Our negotiations will continue with the rail operators to create a package on jobs, conditions and pay that can be offered to our members.”
Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said: “It’s now clear to our members, and the public, that this was never about reform or modernisation but an attempt to get hundreds of millions of pounds of productivity for a 20 per cent pay cut while taking away any hope of the union having any say in the future.
“It is time the companies – encouraged, perhaps, by the government – sat down with us and got serious. That is the way – and the only way – to end this dispute.”
A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, said: “It’s disappointing our fair and affordable offer, which would take average driver base salaries from £60,000 to nearly £65,000 by the end of 2023 pay awards, wasn’t put to the Aslef members.
“With taxpayers still funding up to an extra £175 million a month to make up the shortfall in revenue post-covid, it provided a significant salary uplift while bringing in long overdue, common-sense reforms that would mean more reliable services for passengers.
“Rather than announcing further unnecessary strikes, we ask Aslef to recognise the very real financial challenge the industry is facing and work with us to deliver a better railway with a strong long-term future.”
Read next:
Woman on trial accused of murder after ex-husband 'tortured to death' in his own home
Coward got his own girlfriend arrested for manslaughter after girl, 18, killed
Wanted man on the run found hiding in bedroom after officers storm house
- Drunk easyJet passenger who grabbed stewardess by neck on Manchester flight is jailed
Bitcoin scammers made so much money they 'handed out £5,000 gift cards in the street'
