Latest news with #RMT
Telegraph
5 hours ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Tube drivers threaten to strike if £76,000 pay demand refused
London Underground drivers are threatening to go on strike if bosses refuse to pay them £76,000 a year. Shop stewards from the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are urging members to strike if Transport for London (TfL) does not hand them a 4.5 per cent pay rise. If granted, the inflation-busting increase would see Tube drivers' salaries reach £76,127 – more than twice the current average annual salary, which is just under £37,500 a year, according to Office for National Statistics data. Twice this sum would be £75,000 – itself not much more than Tube drivers' current pay of £72,849, which they receive for a 35-hour working week. London Underground drivers are already comfortably inside the top 10 per cent of all salaried employees in Britain. The Telegraph understands that TfL has offered Tube drivers a 2.8 per cent pay increase. But a union newsletter seen by The Telegraph said: 'We demand a pay rise that protects us from the real cost of living. As always, RMT bases our pay negotiations on the Retail Price Index – RPI.' Earning more than about £64,000 a year puts a person ahead of 90 per cent of other salary-earners, as opposed to those on hourly wages, according to the ONS. Keith Prince, the London Assembly Conservatives' transport spokesman, said: 'It's never enough – Khan and the Labour Government bunged billions at union barons without any strings attached, and for nothing. 'Now drivers are looking for a salary more than double what the average Brit earns. Perhaps those in the public sector would do well to remember that when people in the private sector want a pay rise, it's usually linked to performance rather than lack thereof.' Last year, Tube drivers' salaries broke £70,000 for the first time after Sir Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor and TfL chairman, bought off threats of strikes by promising drivers a four-day working week and a 4.6 per cent pay rise. In return for an extra day off, drivers will be asked to work the same 35 hours a week they do at present – while retaining their salaries and generous travel perks. Sir Sadiq has not been shy of giving money to the Tube unions. For 2023's annual pay increase, he handed them a 5 per cent pay rise, prompting accusations that the Mayor had found a 'magic money tree'. The RMT union de-affiliated from the Labour Party in 2004, but has consistently backed the party regardless. In the run-up to last year's general election the union issued a statement saying: 'We are not affiliated to any political party and will back Labour and socialist candidates.' Addressing the most recent strike threat, an RMT spokesman said: 'Most workers we represent across London Underground earn modest salaries and work around the clock to keep London moving. We are seeking an improved offer from the employer.' A TfL spokesman said: 'Pay discussions have begun with all of our recognised trade unions on London Underground. We look forward to reaching a fair and affordable agreement for our colleagues. 'We would urge RMT to engage with us in our established processes to reach an agreement that would benefit our colleagues, their members and London as a whole.' A two-year strike campaign by main line train drivers came to an end last year when the Labour Government handed them a 15 per cent pay rise.
BBC News
6 hours ago
- Climate
- BBC News
TfL activates hot weather Tube plan during heatwave
Transport for London (TfL) has said it has a "comprehensive" hot weather plan in place during the current heatwave. Last year, the Victoria line was named the hottest on the London Underground, with an average temperature above 30C between June and October, followed closely by the Central and Bakerloo is urging passengers to carry water and to "look out for each other while travelling". Train drivers' union Aslef said TfL had removed chilled water and "spending your working shift in a small metal box deep underground is rarely a pleasant experience" while the RMT called on TfL to "accelerate long-overdue efforts to introduce effective cooling". Industrial fans TfL said 40% of trains across the network have air conditioning, including the Circle, Hammersmith & City, District and Metropolitan lines, which have the coolest temperatures (19.3C) on Overground and Elizabeth line trains are also the prolonged 2022 heatwave, TfL reported a drop in passenger numbers who were advised to travel only if older lines, TfL says it has introduced "a range of station cooling systems including industrial-sized fans and chiller units to pump in cold air". Finn Brennan, Aslef's London Underground organiser, said heat affects Tube train drivers in different ways. He said: "Although cabs have air cooling units, these are very variable in quality."The job requires long hours of concentration, which is difficult to achieve when hot nights make it hard to get any sleep before a shift that can start as early as 04.45 BST."Hot weather also leads to more delays, through the impact on track and on passengers who have been taken ill."As part of TfL's cost-cutting programme, they removed the supply of chilled water for staff across the network but while TfL staff in head office buildings still have access to cool water and the opportunity to work remotely, Tube train drivers have no such luxury. "We still turn up and do the job of keeping London moving, whatever the weather." RMT General Secretary Eddie Dempsey said London Underground staff do "vital, safety-critical work", often in deep-level tunnels where the temperature regularly exceeds added: "The TUC has long called for a legally enforceable maximum workplace temperature of 30C, or 27C for strenuous work."Underground conditions can frequently exceed those temperatures and that is not acceptable or safe."The union wants TfL to "take this key health and safety matter seriously" by providing access to water, improving ventilation, and accelerating "long-overdue" efforts to introduce effective cooling."That includes upgrading air circulation systems, expanding use of tunnel ventilation shafts, and rolling out proven solutions like cooling panels, chiller units, and modern air-conditioned rolling stock." Carl Eddleston, TfL's director of streets and network operations, said with continuous hot weather forecast over the coming days, customers should carry water with them when they travel."
Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Tube drivers threatening to strike if 'bosses refuse to pay them £76,000 a year'
London Underground drivers are threatening to go on strike if 'bosses refuse to pay them £76,000 a year'. The RMT trade union is allegedly urging members to take action if Transport for London (TfL) does not offer them a pay rise of 4.5 per cent. If accepted, salaries for drivers would raise to £76,127, more than twice the average annual salary. Currently, most tube drivers make around £72,000 a year, which is already close to double the average salary of £37,500, according to the Office for National Statistics. TfL has reportedly offered Tube drivers a 2.8 per cent pay rise. In a letter seen by The Telegraph, the union has called for a pay rise that 'protects members from the real cost of living '. Keith Prince, the London Assembly transport spokesman said: 'It's never enough - Khan and the Labour government bunged billions at union barons without any strings attached, and for nothing. 'Now drivers are looking for a salary more than double what the average Brit earns.' Last year Sir Sadiq Khan warded off the threat of strikes by promising train drivers a four-day working week and a 4.6 per cent pay rise. Workers would do a regular 34-hour week across four days, including a 30-minute paid break, instead of 38.5 hours. Drivers would only work a fifth day of the week once every three months, to account for some of the time being trimmed. However, this work would be training rather than operating trains. The ASLEF union accepted the new terms in a vote, but the RMT union is still yet to agree. Aslef announced in April that 70 per cent of members had voted to endorse the new terms in a ballot, with 80 per cent turnout. Finn Brennan, Aslef's full-time organiser on London Underground, said: 'Despite a campaign of disinformation and distortion by those who want to prevent drivers having improved working conditions and a better work-life balance, our members have voted in favour of the proposal by 70 per cent on an 80 per cent turnout in an independently audited referendum. 'As a majority of members have voted in favour of the proposal, we will now be writing to the company to inform them of the result and to arrange a meeting to start detailed discussions on implementation.' Currently drivers take unpaid breaks within their hours, and 'bank' one hour a week that is given back as time in lieu later. Supporters of the new arrangement say it is hard for TfL to dictate how long unpaid breaks should last. A TfL spokesperson said: 'We look forward to reaching a fair and affordable agreement for our colleagues.' The RMT union has been contacted for comment.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Telegraph
TfL sacks Tube driver for knitting and watching videos at the wheel
A London Underground driver was spotted knitting and watching videos on their phone while operating a train. The Northern Line driver shocked commuters by appearing distracted at Hendon Central station in February this year. The driver was later dismissed by Transport for London (TfL) after an investigation. One witness, who caught the incident on camera, said: 'I was so surprised. I didn't expect to see someone meant to be at work being so casual about the job. 'Especially because, at the time, there were Tube strikes going on, so it felt mad they were complaining about the job then relaxing on it.' A TfL spokesman said: 'This video was made earlier in the year. We carried out a full investigation and the person involved no longer works at TfL.' London Underground drivers can earn up to £72,849 a year for a 35-hour week. Strike action The Tube has been rocked by strike action in recent years. Last year, TfL offered Tube drivers a four-day working week that would have come into effect from 2027 in an attempt to help fend off a series of threatened strikes in the run-up to Christmas. It was rejected by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers. In return for an extra day off, drivers would have been asked to work the same 35 hours a week they do at present – while retaining their salaries of £72,849 and the generous travel perks that come with it. Shifts on those four working days would have been lengthened by around 45 minutes, taking them to 8.5 hours on average. Last year, Tube workers were given a 5 per cent pay rise by Sir Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, that cost the taxpayer £30 million, prompting accusations that he had found a 'magic money tree'. Underground drivers also enjoy 43 days holiday a year, thanks to a previous deal that saw time spent on shift but not working transferred into extra holidays. Sir Sadiq's record Sir Sadiq has presided over more walkouts on the Tube network than the past two London mayors combined, despite promising 'zero strikes' when he first ran for office. Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone, Sir Sadiq's predecessors and the first two London mayors since the post was created in 2000, oversaw 51 strikes between them over a combined period of 16 years. Sir Sadiq exceeded that total in March 2022.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Unclear when reduced Sunday rail service will end
A rail service says it is unclear when it will stop a reduced Sunday service it has been running since late last year. Northern has been running fewer services in north-west England every Sunday since 22 December 2024, because it has not been able to find enough conductors to work those days. The firm's managing director Tricia Williams told a Transport for the North Meeting on Tuesday the reduced service was "not what we all want" but did offer customers "predictability". Northern said it was still negotiating with National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) over Sunday working. RMT confirmed discussions were ongoing. The firm has previously said the problem it faced on Sundays was it was contractually outside the working week for North West conductors. Affected services include routes from Barrow and Windermere to Manchester Airport, and from Barrow to Carlisle. Ms Williams said the reduced service currently relied on volunteers. "The success criteria for us is about achieving a truly seven-day railway," she said. She said the aim for the company was to ensure no more than 2% of services were being cancelled by the end of 2027 and that 90% of trains arrived within three minutes of schedule. RMT said it was conducting "detailed discussions with Northern Trains to bring together working practices for conductors from three legacy companies into a single, modern agreement". "The talks aim to ensure consistency, reflect advances in technology, and support reliable services throughout the week", a spokesperson said. Any proposals would be subject to government approval, they added. It follows Northern being issued a breach notice by the Department for Transport (DfT) in July 2024 for cancelling too many trains. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas to northeastandcumbria@ Trains face delays over Sunday workers shortage Northern pins reliability hopes on new trains Northern Transport for the North
