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Publication Date: December 20 2012
RMT’s executive has met to consider the current situation and due to the continued and deliberate lack of any movement by the management has decided to call strike action to put further pressure on the company to meet our members aspirations.
RMT signalling members working at Stirling Middle, Stirling North and Dunblane are instructed to Cease work and take strike action between: -
This means that staff already on duty at 23.59 hours on the Sunday will stop work at that time and take strike action. Members will not return to work until after 23.58 hours on the Monday.
For many months now RMT has attempted to negotiate an agreement with local management over twelve hour rosters within the framework agreement on rostering agreed between management and the unions. Regretfully, despite considerable efforts by RMT’s local reps, management refuse to budge and give in to our call for the 12 hour rosters which all our members in the Stirling area want and which the union knows will deliver a safe and efficient service and which is perfectly normal practice.
RMT is currently in the process of consulting all signalling members across Scotland in a series of meetings on how the dispute affects them, specifically the refusal of management to operate and negotiate within the terms of current rostering agreements. RMT has not ruled out the option of escalating the action as a result of the current breakdown and in light of the implications for the wider signalling membership.
RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said
“This dispute has been dragging on for many months and management should be in no doubt of as to RMT’s determination to achieve 12 hour rosters for our members. A 100% vote for strike action plus a near 100% vote in favour of a 12 hour roster system cannot and should not be ignored.
“This dispute has been on-going for far too long due to management intransigence and it is a tribute to the determination and solidarity of RMT members that they have stood firm and are now geared up to support the next period of action in this latest in a series of strikes. We are now in the process of consulting signalling members across Scotland on the implications for the wider workforce of managements refusal to negotiate a reasonable settlement within existing rostering agreements.
"Our members have shown their anger through their rock solid support for the earlier waves of strike action with pickets out in force sending a clear message to the employers that RMT is determined to win this fight.
“RMT will not allow Network Rail to ride roughshod over the clear democratic will of our members to improve the quality of their work/life balance and over negotiated rostering agreements that affect all of our signalling members. That is why we are now stepping up both the wider campaign amongst our members and the strike action again and we remain available for meaningful talks.
ENDS
