A spate of nationwide rail strikes over the busy festive season looked increasingly likely on Monday, after the RMT union rejected a pay offer.
The Rail Delivery Group, which is representing 14 train operators, has offered a 4% pay rise this year, backdated to the start of the financial year, followed by a further 4% increase next year.
It wants to change working practices to fund the rises, however, including closing some ticket offices and introducing Sunday working where it is not already in place.
It also proposed the use of part-time contracts and flexible working patterns, and guaranteed no compulsory redundancies until April 2024.
But the RMT has rejected the offer, arguing that it does not meet any of its long-term criteria on pay, working conditions and job security.
General secretary Mike Lynch added that the proposals would lead to “thousands” of job losses as well as “unsafe practices”, such as driver-only operated trains.
RMT said it would continue to consider another offer from Network Rail – which owns the UK’s infrastructure – in a separate dispute over pay and working conditions, and that talks with the Rail Delivery Group would continue.
However, the train operators and Network Rail said a settlement needed to be reached by the end of Monday if the first strike was to be avoided.
Union members voted in favour of industrial action taking place over four 48-hour periods, on 13-14 December, 16-17 December, 3-4 January and 6-7 January. Should the strikes go ahead, rail workers will join a number of other workers – including nurses, postal staff and university lecturers – who are striking over pay and conditions in the run-up to Christmas.
Members of the Fire Brigade Union, meanwhile, are currently voting on possible industrial action after being offered a 5% pay rise. The ballot closes at the end of January.
Years of slow wage growth have been intensified by soaring inflation, which currently sits at a historic high of 11.1%.
