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RMT announces a 24 hour strike on the Victoria Line this week over door-opening safety issues and bullying of staff

Publication Date: May 19 2009

RMT train operators working out of the Seven Sisters depot, covering the Victoria Line, will be on strike from 21.00 hours Wednesday 20 May to 20.59 hours Thursday 21 May in a second day of action in a dispute over the failure to install Correct Door Side Enabling Equipment and the continuing bullying, harassment and victimisation of RMT members.

The strike follows on from a rock-solid day of action last month which shut down the entire Victoria Line for 24 hours. RMT expects the same solid response this week as London Underground has failed to respond positively on any of the core issues;

  • The failure to install the Correct Door Side Enabling Equipment on the Victoria Line which is operational on all other lines on the Underground.

  • A demand for the reinstatement of sacked train driver Carl Campbell whose dismissal was confirmed this week.

  • An end to management misuse of attendance and disciplinary procedures.

  • An end to the victimisation of RMT activist Glenroy Watson

“The intransigence of Underground management has forced our members on the Victoria Line to take another 24 hours of strike action. We know very well the disruption that the action will cause but we will not sit back while managers play fast and loose with train safety and while our members and activists are subjected to intimidation, bullying and victimisation,” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today

“There can be no excuse for the failure to install Correct Door Side Enabling Equipment. It is operational on all other sections of the Underground and this dangerous penny-pinching on the Victoria Line puts both our members and the general public at risk. We’ve got no option but to strike to force this issue up the agenda and we expect the travelling public will understand that it’s better to face up to another day of disruption than to wait for the first fatality.

“RMT remains available for talks and we hope that management will see sense and take the necessary steps to resolve this dispute,” Bob Crow said.

Ends

Note to editors:

RMT is currently re-balloting nearly 10,000 members across London Underground and Transport for London for strike action in separate disputes centred on jobs, pay and breaches of disciplinary and attendance agreements. The ballots close on Thursday 28th May.