Railway union workers industrial and strike action - 2022

[whole diary]

[Timmer]

Exactly.  Far too far in advance to know for sure.  I don’t expect the summer Sunday situation to improve much for at least three years though sadly.

Which begs the question why won't GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) produce a realistic summer Sunday timetable that can be achieved instead of having to cancel services every Sunday?

[IndustryInsider]

Good question.

Because that would be admitting defeat?  Or in breach of their contract?  Or the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) won’t allow them?  Or because they have a more optimistic view than I have? 

[TaplowGreen]

Exactly.  Far too far in advance to know for sure.  I don’t expect the summer Sunday situation to improve much for at least three years though sadly.

Frankly an appalling prospect, and bodes ill for the future of a railway which will rely increasingly on leisure travel to sustain viability on many routes.

[IndustryInsider]

Exactly.  Far too far in advance to know for sure.  I don’t expect the summer Sunday situation to improve much for at least three years though sadly.

Frankly an appalling prospect, and bodes ill for the future of a railway which will rely increasingly on leisure travel to sustain viability on many routes.

I agree.  Make sure you take every opportunity to put that point of view across to the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway).

[a-driver]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-62634795


With Citi forecasting inflation to hit over 18% next year I think the chances of settling this dispute is diminishing very quickly.

[ChrisB]

That's next year's settlement (if it does get that high)

[a-driver]

That's next year's settlement (if it does get that high)

I did say next year!  But when the likes of Network Rail are offering multi-year pay deals (the current being being 8% over two or three years) shows this is some way off being settled. 

[IndustryInsider]

I’ve always been wary of multi-year settlements, and in the current climate I don’t see any point in them at all.

[a-driver]

I’ve always been wary of multi-year settlements, and in the current climate I don’t see any point in them at all.

Absolutely. Sort a one year deal out based on the months RPI^▸ (Revenue Protection Inspector (or Retail Price Index, depending on the context)) we usually use (Feb or March) and then start discussing a framework for next year. 

[ChrisB]

There have been multi-year deals - TFL^▸ (Transport for London) have just finished one. It was based I believe on RPI^▸ (Revenue Protection Inspector (or Retail Price Index, depending on the context))%+0.25%

[Electric train]

There have been multi-year deals - TFL^▸ (Transport for London) have just finished one. It was based I believe on RPI^▸ (Revenue Protection Inspector (or Retail Price Index, depending on the context))%+0.25%

While inflation was below 2% employers were content with these types of deals over multiple years, if the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) were to offer the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) RPI plus 0.25%  I suspect the RMT would be more inclined to accept it as the pay award part of the talks; threat of redundancies is a different and very difficult circle to square

[Marlburian]

My Polish friend is flying back to London on Sunday, so I checked on the trains from Stansted and discovered there was a replacement bus service to Waltham Cross, where she could then get a train. Turns out to be "planned engineering works". She was going to book a seat on National Express, then looked again at her air ticket and saw it was for Luton.The trains there to London look OK.

And I've previously posted about her travelling from Waterloo to Reading, then back to Paddington. She's back in London over the next few days and is very nonchalant about the various strikes. She reckons that today she'll catch a National Express bus from Stansted to London, where's she staying in Queensway, close to Paddington, so convenient for a Reading train. Only there's a very limited service. Now she's talking of travelling from Waterloo: "it was such a great journey last time - very much enjoyed it - train was great too".

Over the years, the only advantage of taking the Waterloo train rather than a Paddington one, was a change of scenery.

[Ollie]

Not related to the pay dispute, however is an RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) strike, so...

RMT has instructed all its members employed as Crossing Keepers, Electrical Control Room Operators, Shift Signaller Managers and Signallers at Didcot Thames Valley Signalling Centre to not book on for any shifts that commence between:

00:01 to 23:59 hours on Saturday 5th November 2022
00:01 to 23:59 hours on Monday 7th November 2022

This dispute is in relation to the dismissal of a signaller.

[infoman]

May I ask what the dismissal was for?

[TaplowGreen]

Not related to the pay dispute, however is an RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) strike, so...

RMT has instructed all its members employed as Crossing Keepers, Electrical Control Room Operators, Shift Signaller Managers and Signallers at Didcot Thames Valley Signalling Centre to not book on for any shifts that commence between:

00:01 to 23:59 hours on Saturday 5th November 2022
00:01 to 23:59 hours on Monday 7th November 2022

This dispute is in relation to the dismissal of a signaller.

In practical terms, what will that mean for services between Reading- Plymouth/Penzance on those dates?

I have a journey which I need to make as a mercy mission on the 7th, I had considered making it by train but it sounds like I may need to consider my options.

Thanks for any advice