More rail workers to strike next month after breakdown of talks

More rail workers are to strike next month in the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions following the breakdown of talks.

The Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) announced its members will strike and take other forms of industrial action at Network Rail and 12 train operators.

Strikes will take place at Avanti West Coast on December 13, 14, 16 and 17, coinciding with walkouts by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at Network Rail and 14 train operators.

Strike action is also scheduled for December 17 at c2c which serves more than two dozen stations between east London and south Essex.

Action short of a strike, in which members will carry out only contractually required duties, will also take place at different times across various companies during the run up to Christmas.

The companies involved are Cross Country, East Midlands Railway (EMR), Great Western Railway (GWR), LNER, Northern, Southeastern, TransPennine Express (TPE), Greater Anglia, Govia Thameslink (GTR), West Midlands Trains (WMT), South Western Railway (SWR) as well as Network Rail (bands 5-8 and equivalent, and controllers).

Action short of a strike will run from December 13 until the end of current ballot mandates, the majority of which end in January.

This form of industrial action means in effect that TSSA members will not cover the duties of other rail workers who may be involved in strike action.

The TSSA said talks with train operators broke down on Tuesday.

TSSA organising director Luke Chester said: “We have decided to push ahead with further industrial action because it’s vital that the train companies and the government understand that our demands are not going away.

“Our union has spent the past three weeks in talks and though some progress has been made it remains the case that ministers are just not willing to open up space for a negotiated settlement.

“Given that talks with the Rail Delivery Group have now broken down we have no option but to continue with our industrial action. We remain available for further serious talks aimed at resolving the dispute, but further strike action is likely if the current impasse in negotiations continues.

“We have been patient but the Government’s refusal to enable employers to make an offer to settle the dispute will now cause misery for passengers.

“A meaningful offer could and should have been made by now which would have settled this dispute but until that happens our members will not back down.”