25 April 2018
RMT Press Office:
RMT confirms further strike action on Northern Rail, Greater Anglia and South Western Railway in disputes over guards and safety
RMT members on all three franchises will strike for 24 hours on Wednesday 9th May.
In addition, members on South Western Railway will also strike for 24 hours on 11th May, 14th May, 16th May and 18th May.
The announcement of the action in the three disputes came as RMT members from across the country gathered outside Parliament today to mark the second anniversary of the guards’ safety dispute on Southern Rail, Britain’s longest running industrial dispute, and to reaffirm the campaign in defence of safe staffing on the rail network.
RMT General Secretary, Mick Cash said:
“Yet again the intransigence of private rail companies operating in England over the key issue of the guard guarantee means that we have no option but to announce further strike action in the separate disputes on Arriva Rail North, Greater Anglia and South Western Railway.
“With RMT members protesting outside Parliament today we are drawing attention to the ludicrous situation that means we are able to reach agreements in Wales and Scotland on the guard guarantee but not on a raft of key franchises in England. If it’s good enough for Wales and Scotland to put rail safety first then it should be good enough for the rest of Britain.
“We have long detected the dead hand of the Government interfering to stop us reaching negotiated settlements in the current disputes and it’s about time Chris Grayling stopped playing politics with passenger safety and started taking the issue seriously.
“RMT remains available for genuine and meaningful talks in each of these disputes.”
Ends.
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