Train operators suspends ticket sales as union barons warn of fresh strike action.

Following the unions’ rejection of Network Rail’s salary offer and threat of further strike action this summer, at least two train operators have halted the sale of tickets for the 27th of July.

The operators have warned that July 26 and July 28 are also likely to be impacted, therefore Avanti West Coast and LNER have stopped selling tickets for that day, which militant union barons have suggested as the next possible day of strike action.

Network Rail executives have encouraged the union barons to return to the negotiation table in order to prevent further disruptions for travelers this summer after being shocked that they rejected the 4% pay increase.

As the acrimonious debate over compensation, jobs, and working conditions rages on, it was announced yesterday that rail workers would go on strike once more.

As the peak of the summer vacations approaches, the most recent strikes pose a risk to travel, with members of the Rail, Maritime, and Transport union planning a 24-hour strike on July 27.

After rejecting a new offer from Network Rail that they called “paltry,” union leaders made the announcement.

The proposal included a 4% salary increase retroactive to January, a 2% pay increase the following year, and a final 2% pay increase contingent upon reaching “modernization benchmarks.”

Until there is greater assurance regarding the services that will be offered that week, railway operators have temporarily halted ticket sales.

In a website advisory, Avanti West Coast stated: “Any clients with current tickets for travel from July 26 to 28 can utilize such tickets at any time between now and July 29.

“The advisory also warned of disruptions.

Customers having tickets for the impacted days (July 26–28) may also request a full refund.

In the interim, in order to limit the number of individuals who may be inconvenienced, we are stopping ticket sales for the 27th of July.

Customers are advised to regularly check both our website and the websites of other operators for updates.

We are sorry for the disruption this RMT and TSSA action may create, but we are displeased with it and think it is premature. In answer to a social media question from a consumer, LNER stated that ticket sales for July 27 had been halted.

Additionally, it is not feasible to purchase tickets for that event on c2c.

Tim Shoveller, the top negotiator for Network Rail, urged union leaders to come back to the negotiating table and assist prevent any additional strikes.

We have had some fruitful discussions with the RMT over the past few weeks, so it was very astonishing that the offer we made on Monday [was] rejected, he told the BBC.

“[It is] a nice solid salary boost, and we’ve satisfied the other things they told us were incredibly essential to them, like a guarantee of no mandatory layoffs and that changes will be agreed upon with them.”

We have met all three of the items that were the subject of our disagreement.

“My major message to the RMT is to get back to the negotiating table, let’s settle on this productivity, and let’s make sure that this agreement is presented to our workforce so that they can cast a vote on it.

If the RMT agreed to ask, I believe the vast majority of our workforce would approve of this proposal.

The railway operating firms, according to the RMT, have not yet made a salary offer or given any assurances on job losses (TOCs).

In light of talk of coordinated walkouts, it said it will communicate with other unions that have received mandates for strike action in the upcoming days.

In recent days, railway company employees who are members of the drivers’ union Aslef and the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) have supported striking action.

“The offer from Network Rail constitutes a real terms wage fall for our workers,” said RMT general secretary Mick Lynch.

“The pitiful sum is reliant on RMT members consenting to radical changes in their working lives.”

We have made progress with mandatory layoffs, but Network Rail is still trying to make our members poorer despite the fact that we have successfully negotiated for double what they are proposing with other rail operators in some situations.

The railway operating businesses are still obstinate and won’t make any fresh concessions about pay and job security.

“Strike action is the only option we have to make it clear to the train sector and the government that this issue will go on for however long it takes until we reach a negotiated settlement.

“The public who will be inconvenienced by our strike action needs to understand that the Government’s shackling of Network Rail and the TOCs is what results in the rail network being shut down for 24 hours,” said the union.

The chief executive of Network Rail, Andrew Haines, commented on the RMT’s announcement of more nationwide strike action on July 27.

He referred to the statement as “extremely irritating” and criticized the union for not making their salary offer to its members.

The fact that these strikes were obviously planned to delay people traveling to the opening of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on July 28, an occasion of major national significance, is also quite concerning, he continued.

The only way we can afford an increase is through modernizing working practices, and we have been clear that we can only support one from our own budgets.

“The RMT’s rejection of our most recent proposal can only indicate that they believe a pay raise should be paid for either by more taxation or higher passenger fares, neither of which we believe to be just.

“We kindly want the RMT to halt this action, return to the negotiating table with us, and demonstrate some willingness to compromise.”

Last month, the RMT staged three strikes that severely disrupted services all over the nation.

‘This next wave of action will cause further suffering for millions and take money out of the business at a time when passenger numbers remain 20% below pre-pandemic levels, making it difficult to finance a wage hike,’ a Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said.

“We want to give our employees raises, but in order to do that, we must update working procedures that are, in some cases, decades old so that we can adapt to new, more leisure-driven travel patterns.

One such procedure is to make Sunday a regular workday so that services are more dependable on weekends.

The alternative, according to the government, “is asking taxpayers to shoulder the burden after donating over £600 per household to keep the railway running throughout the pandemic, or asking passengers to pay even higher fares when they are already struggling to make ends meet.”

“Instead of organizing further ineffective strikes, we implore the RMT to return to the negotiating table so we can produce a settlement that works for our staff, our passengers, and the taxpayers,” the statement reads.

In a disagreement over salary, conditions, and job security, nearly 700 TSSA members at Great Western Railway (GWR), Greater Anglia, and TransPennine Express have voted in favor of strike action.

Strikes and other types of industrial action were supported by GWR members, who met the criteria for both.

Although employees at Greater Anglia and TransPennine Express voted in favor of strikes and other forms of action, the necessary threshold was not reached.

The union is seeking a promise that no mandatory layoffs would occur in 2022, as well as an increase in compensation that takes into account the rising cost of living.

TSSA has not set specific dates for industrial action at these businesses, but it will discuss the next steps with local representatives.

In the rail sector, disputes are getting worse, increasing the probability of a major disruption.

“This is a great set of results for our union,” said Manuel Cortes, TSSA general secretary, “and follows closely on the heels of similar votes at a host of other train operating companies and our Network Rail members.”

The results show that our members are completely committed to taking strike action or other non-strike measures to defend their pay, jobs, and working conditions, so they cannot stand in for other trade unions’ strike-takers.

“They are right to do so in the face of the escalating Conservative cost-of-living crisis and with a disorganized Government hell-bent on making sweeping cuts to our rail network while inflation rages,” said the author.

Any rail firm would be foolish to disregard the sentiments of our membership.

We’ve already started talking to workplace representatives regarding the next steps in this disagreement.

If ministers had any common sense, they would sit down and resolve this so that we could provide a just payout for the employees who were acclaimed as heroes during the pandemic.

‘The railway must change and modernize, and yesterday the RMT were offered a fair contract which would see earnings of their members rise by up to 8% after two years to accomplish just that,’ said Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.

“However, the RMT has already chosen to engage in additional damaging strikes and is determined to bring about greater suffering for citizens all around the nation.

The people who will be most impacted by their strike are the very same people who contributed £600 per household to keep the railway running throughout the pandemic and guarantee that no one lost their job.

The average rail worker already earns £44,000, which is much more than these people.

However, it is now evident that no solution was ever going to satisfy the RMT, and the current conversations were largely a charade while they deliberate how to further wreak havoc.

Chaos was purposefully scheduled to start the day before the Commonwealth Games in an effort to obstruct the travel plans of thousands of people seeking to attend an event that the entire nation is looking forward to.

By insisting on working against its employers rather than with them, the RMT runs the risk of permanently turning off the industry’s life support system.

To conjunction with the RMT action, the TSSA declared that its members at Avanti West Coast will also go on strike on July 27.

Members of this group deal with passengers, handle tickets, and perform station platform responsibilities.

The first of a dozen train companies, plus Network Rail, that TSSA successfully balloted for industrial action over compensation, job security, and conditions was Avanti, the west coast mainline operator.

“I have been clear from the beginning – our members are completely motivated to fight for their salaries, employment, and conditions,” Mr. Cortes added.

That is why, despite having announced the outcome of our industrial action ballot at the end of June, this strike action at Avanti is required and is only being done as a last resort in the absence of a new offer from the employer.

Despite a cost-of-living crisis, our government is hellbent on implementing drastic cuts to our rail system and isn’t even giving Avanti and other businesses the leverage they need to reach a deal that is just for our members.

‘Our members are serious and have demonstrated that they mean business, so ministers in this disorganized Conservative government would do well to sit up and take note right now.

These are the same individuals who were praised as heroes during the pandemic and now face threats to their income, employment, and working conditions.

They have the full support of our union, and this is just the beginning.

Our requests are straightforward: a guarantee against forced layoffs, a pay increase that keeps pace with inflation, and an end to unilateral changes to terms and conditions.

Although only on a serious basis, we are always willing to compromise.

Our door is open, but given the current state of affairs, we are now faced with the prospect of a summer marked by unrest on our railways.

Grant Shapps, the secretary of transportation, wrote on Twitter: “Yesterday @RMTunion was given pay package worth up to 8% over 2yrs.

Today, without even bringing it to their members, their leadership rejected it and instead called for another strike.

“RMT bosses aren’t interested in finding a solution; they only want to put the traveling public through pain,” the critic charged.