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Publication Date: June 23 2006
"However Serco re-packages this plan it still mean fewer safety-critical station staff and the downgrading of the skills and pay of those that remain," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.
"That is not just bad news for our members, but bad news for everybody who uses the DLR.
"It is scandalous that a rail franchisee should even try to reduce properly trained staff in an industry that needs more and better safety and security - and it is shocking that they are doing it simply to save money because they over-trimmed their bid to retain the franchise.
"Serco are misleading the travelling public when they say they will have more people on duty, because they know they will have fewer people with the skills and experience to deal with an emergency.
"The company's supposed compromise would put current station staff on trains for 70 per cent of their time - even when they are supposed to be supervising new, inexperienced and less-well-trained people on stations.
"That is dangerous nonsense and our members have made it clear that it is unacceptable.
"Serco's penny-pinching is so bad that they have even withdrawn their sweetener of early retirement and redundancy, and for some of our members these plans mean a £5,000 pay cut and a pay freeze until 2010.
"Our members have delivered a decisive mandate for action to defend these safety-critical jobs and to prevent watering down of safety standards," Bob Crow said.
ends
Note to editors: RMT members will not book on for shifts scheduled to commence between 03:59 on July 3 and 03:58 on July 4.
Previous press releases on this issue:
June 13 2006: http://www.rmt.org.uk/Templates/Internal.asp?NodeID=97436&int1stParentNodeID=89732
May 31 2006: http://www.rmt.org.uk/Templates/Internal.asp?NodeID=97301&int1stParentNodeID=89732
May 22 2006: http://www.rmt.org.uk/Templates/Internal.asp?NodeID=97230&int1stParentNodeID=89732
