Are trains running tomorrow? How rail strike on Friday 1 September …
Train travel will be disrupted again[1] on Friday and Saturday due to strike action[2] called by drivers’ union Aslef and the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT)[3] union.
They are the latest in a long string of strikes[4] that stretch back more than a year, as unions battle with train companies in disputes over pay, jobs and working conditions.
Here’s all you need to know about the industrial action, from upcoming dates[5] to how you can expect services to be affected during the strikes[6].
Are trains running tomorrow?
Train drivers represented by Aslef will strike on Friday 1 September, with the action set to shut down the majority of the rail network.
Use the links below to find full information on how each operator is affected:
Some operators will be unable to run any trains, while others will offer a significantly reduced service.
You can check your journey using National Rail’s journey planner here[7].
On Saturday 2 September 20,000 rail workers represented by the RMT will strike, again causing significant disruption to travel. This will be exacerbated by Aslef’s overtime ban.
National Rail said: “Please ensure you check the first and last trains on the day of industrial action, and first services the day after as these services may also be impacted.”
Why are train strikes still going on?
Train services in the UK[8] have now been disrupted by strikes for over a year[9], and the union disputes show little sign of coming to an end[10].
The RMT has set out a “road map”[11] to a negotiated settlement in the long-running dispute[12] over jobs, pay and conditions.
RMT general secretary, Mick Lynch, said the union’s demands are:
- A one-year pay proposal for all companies covering the year 2022-23, with an underpin, backdated to the relevant anniversary dates in 2022.
- A guarantee of no compulsory redundancies.
- An undertaking that discussions with RMT within the companies, including formal consultations and negotiations, will be deferred until the outcome and determination from the ticket office closures[13] consultation has been provided by the Government and, in any case, that these discussions will not commence before 1 December, 2023.
- A commitment that the existing collective bargaining structures and processes in each company will be respected and adhered to in full, including consultation and negotiation as appropriate to the matters in scope and, if necessary, use of Avoidance of Dispute processes.
- A commitment that pay negotiations for the year 2023-24 will commence from 1 December, 2023.
Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said: “We don’t want to take this action but the train companies, and the Government which stands behind them, have forced us into this place because they refuse to sit down and talk to us and have not made a fair and sensible pay offer to train drivers who have not had one for four years – since 2019 – while prices have soared in that time by more than 12 per cent.
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‘The Government appears happy to let passengers – and businesses – suffer in the mistaken belief that they can bully us into submission. They don’t care about passengers – or Britain’s railway – but they will not break us.”
Prior to the release of the RMT letter, a spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, which represents the rail companies, said: “There is no question the strikes called by the RMT and Aslef leaderships are deliberately designed to target passengers who want to enjoy various sporting events and festivals during the bank holiday, and at the end of the summer holidays, disrupting their plans, hurting local economies and forcing more cars on to the road.
“This, despite having the RMT having repeatedly refused their memberships a vote on offers of up to 13 per cent for the lowest paid over two years, which could easily settle this dispute.”
References
- ^ Train travel will be disrupted again (inews.co.uk)
- ^ strike action (inews.co.uk)
- ^ Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) (inews.co.uk)
- ^ They are the latest in a long string of strikes (inews.co.uk)
- ^ from upcoming dates (inews.co.uk)
- ^ how you can expect services to be affected during the strikes (inews.co.uk)
- ^ National Rail’s journey planner here (ojp.nationalrail.co.uk)
- ^ Train services in the UK (inews.co.uk)
- ^ disrupted by strikes for over a year (inews.co.uk)
- ^ little sign of coming to an end (inews.co.uk)
- ^ The RMT has set out a “road map” (inews.co.uk)
- ^ long-running dispute (inews.co.uk)
- ^ ticket office closures (inews.co.uk)