Rail strike to go ahead on Thursday after talks break down without agreement, says RMT union
Thursday’s rail strike we will go ahead after talks broke down without an agreement, The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has said.
Talks resumed on Wednesday with Network Rail saying they wanted to continue until a deal is reached however, Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT said Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, “wrecked” the negotiations.
The RMT is staging three days of action this week, around 40,000 staff at Network Rail and 13 train operators walked out on Monday, workers will walk out on Thursday and further action is planned for Saturday.
Transport for Wales (TfW) is not in dispute with the union but the majority of rail services across Wales will be suspended during industrial action due to Network Rail signallers walking out.
Railway stations across North Wales were deserted on Monday as the biggest wave of rail strikes for 30 years got underway.
Each strike is lasting 24 hours. However, train operators have warned that knock-on effects mean disruption on either side of the strike days.
The RMT has said that its members are striking because of “pay freezes, threats to jobs and attacks on their terms and conditions”.
They believe that many railway staff are being treated unfairly.
Commenting on today’s talks, Mick Lynch RMT general secretary said: “Grant Shapps has wrecked these negotiations by not allowing Network Rail to withdraw their letter threatening redundancy for 2,900 of our members.”
“Until the government unshackle Network Rail and the train operating companies, it is not going to be possible for a negotiated settlement to be agreed.”
“We will continue with our industrial campaign until we get a negotiated settlement that delivers job security and a pay rise for our members that deals with the escalating cost of living crisis”
