Rail union announces train driver strikes at start of October

Ongoing pay disputes in the rail sector have prompted yet more strikes to be planned across the UK – this time from train drivers at the beginning of October.

Industrial action was confirmed on Tuesday by ASLEF, the trade union which represents 96% of train drivers in England, Scotland and Wales – and it will take place on Saturday, October 1 and Wednesday, October 5.

Twelve train operating companies will be affected by the strikes, including the likes of Northern Trains, Hull Trains and London North Eastern Railway; which run services through Greater Lincolnshire.

The strikes are the latest in a long line of action by trade unions within the rail sector, as ongoing pay negotiations for workers continue to cause disruption.

Grantham train station stock image. | Photo: Matt Buck/Flickr

ASLEF argues that train companies have offered workers the equivalent of a real terms pay cut in line with inflation, and want a better wage package for the staff members it represents.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the median 2021 salary for train and tram drivers was £59,189. Comparably, for nurses it was some £28,000 less than that – at £31,093.

A strike had initially been planned for September 15, but that was put on hold as a mark of respect following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

Mick Whelan, ASLEF’s general secretary, said: “We would much rather not be in this position. We don’t want to go on strike – withdrawing your labour, although a fundamental human right, is always a last resort for this trade union – but the train companies have been determined to force our hand.

“They are telling train drivers to take a real terms pay cut. With inflation now running at 12.3% – and set, it is said, to go higher – these companies are saying that drivers should be prepared to work just as hard, for just as long, but for considerably less.”

The union went on to say that workers “deserve to be treated better than this” after the hard work of drivers who “kept Britain moving” during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lincoln Train Station. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

The Rail Delivery Group has responded to the new strike announcement, saying industrial action is “not in the long-term interests of rail workers or building a sustainable rail industry.”

A statement from the RDG reads: “These strikes will once again hugely inconvenience the very passengers the industry needs to support its recovery from the ongoing impact of the pandemic.

“They range from those left out of pocket because they can’t get to work, to people missing vital appointments and to thousands of London marathon participants, who, after months of training, will have their journeys to London disrupted at the weekend.

“We want to give our people a pay rise, but without the reforms we are proposing, we simply cannot deliver pay increases. Revenue is still around 80% of pre-pandemic levels, no business can survive that scale of upheaval without implementing change.

“The actions of union leaders have very real consequences: every strike day takes more money out of their members’ pockets.

“We want to see the industry and its people thrive – we are asking the unions’ leadership to do the right thing, call off these damaging strikes and work with us to make that happen.”

Notable events taking place in and around this proposed strike action are the Conservative party conference in Birmingham and the London Marathon – with severe disruption expected for both.

Timetables are yet to be published by rail companies, but if previous industrial action is anything to go by, we can expect to see a large number of services cancelled by the strikes.

2022: The year of train strikes

A picket line of RMT workers outside Lincoln train station, striking over pay and job security. | Photo: Ellis Karran for The Lincolnite

Over the course of this year, we have seen a fairly volatile dispute over pay between rail companies and trade unions, resulting in a series of strike days that brought the sector to its knees.

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers first called for strike action in June, affecting 13 English train companies in the process and cancelling the plans of multiple residents in the largest rail dispute in over 30 years.

A month later, in July, the RMT again set up picket lines outside train stations after a lack of progress in negotiations over staff pay. The same then happened during a walk-out in August, again organised by the RMT.

The union has long stated that it is willing to sit around the table with train companies, but will not settle for what they call a real terms pay cut.

Lincoln train station was closed for each of these strike occasions, and will likely end up closed again should the driver walk-out take place in October.