ROSTERING ISSUES, CATERING GRADES – AVANTI WEST COAST

Our Ref: BR2/8/2

TO ALL AVANTI WEST COAST CATERING GRADES

14th March 2024

Dear RMT Member,

ROSTERING ISSUES, CATERING GRADES – AVANTI WEST COAST

Following your Union raising concerns with Avanti West over the issues with the STP Diagrams, the matter is still currently unresolved.

The current situation where staff diagrams are being wrongly cancelled, other staff members are allocated their work off spare and the staff in the original post are made spare but subjected to a two-hour movement on STP. This situation is unacceptable and cannot continue.

The work/life balance of RMT members has been severely jeopardised by the company’s incompetence.

The Union’s National Executive Committee has instructed me to ballot all Avanti West Coast catering grades for industrial action. It is imperative that we achieve the necessary ballot mandate to take industrial action. A successful mandate will send a clear message to the company that we demand they take our concerns seriously.

Now more than ever, it is imperative that we stand together and demonstrate our strength of feeling to the company and that we will not allow Avanti West Coast to bully catering grades into this unacceptable position. I am urging members to vote 'YES' to both questions in the ballot for industrial action.

Therefore, the ballot for industrial action will open on Friday 15th March 2024 and will close on Thursday 4th April 2024.

It is imperative that we get a massive return in the ballot for industrial action, so we are not prevented from acting on our members' wishes by the ballot thresholds. Failure to meet these thresholds means industrial action cannot happen, so a high turnout is crucial.

I urge members not to waste their vote and to vote 'YES' for strike action and industrial action short of a strike.

Yours sincerely

Michael Lynch 

General Secretary