all workers will stage another strike in the bitter dispute over wages, jobs and conditions, looming travel chaos at the height of summer vacation.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) trade union at train companies and Network Rail will run for 24 hours on July 27.
Union leaders made the announcement after rejecting a new offer from Network Rail that they described as “poor”.
The offer was for a 4% pay increase retroactive to January, a further 2% next year and a further 2% provided “modernization milestones” are met.
The RMT said it has not yet received a pay offer or job cut guarantees from the train operators (TOCs).
The RMT said it will consult other unions that have issued strike action mandates in the coming days, amid talks of coordinated strikes.
Members of the drivers’ union Insult and the Transport Salried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) at train companies have supported union action in recent days.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Network Rail’s offer represents a real pay cut for our members and the paltry amount is conditional on RMT members agreeing to drastic changes in their working lives.
“We have made progress with redundancies, but Network Rail is still trying to make our members poorer, while in some cases we have won double what they offer, with other rail operators.
Strike action is the only avenue open to us to make clear to both the rail industry and the government that this dispute will go on for as long as it takes.
“The train operators remain stubborn and refuse to make a new offer related to job security and wages.
“Strike strikes are the only avenue open to us to make it clear to both the rail industry and the government that this dispute will last as long as necessary until we reach a negotiated settlement.
“The public who will be affected by our strike action must understand that it is the government that hooked Network Rail and the TOCs, meaning the rail network will be shut down for 24 hours.”
The RMT held three strikes last month that paralyzed services across the country.
A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group said: “This latest move will cause millions more misery and money from the industry at a time when passenger numbers remain 20% below pre-pandemic levels, making it harder to get a pay rise. to pay.
Rather than stage more counterproductive strikes, we ask the RMT to come back to the table so we can strike a deal that works for our people, our passengers and taxpayers.
“We want to give our people a pay rise, but to do that, we’ve brought work practices that are in some cases decades old up to date so that we can adapt to new, more leisure-led travel patterns – including creating a Sunday part. of the standard working week, so that weekend shifts are more reliable.
“The alternative is to ask taxpayers to shoulder the burden after contributing more than £600 per household to keep the railway running during the pandemic, or ask passengers to pay even higher fares if they, too, are getting stuffy.” – and that’s just not fair.
“Instead of organizing more counterproductive strikes, we’re asking the RMT to come back to the table so we can strike a deal that works for our people, our passengers and taxpayers.”
almost 700 TSSA members of Great Western Railway (GWR), Greater Anglia and TransPennine Express have voted for industrial action in a dispute over pay, conditions and job security.
GWR members supported strikes and other forms of industrial action and reached the required threshold for both.
Those at Greater Anglia and TransPennine Express voted for strikes and actions rather than a strike, but the legal threshold for a strike vote was not met.
The union is demanding a guarantee of no redundancies before 2022, no disagreements over terms and a wage increase that reflects the rising cost of living.
“If ministers had any idea they would come to the table to sort this out so we have a fair settlement for workers hailed as heroes during the pandemic
TSSA has not provided dates for union action at these companies, but will consider next steps with workplace representatives.
Disputes are escalating in the rail industry, with an increasing likelihood of widespread disruption.
TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes said: “This is a great result for our union and comes hard on the heels of similar votes from a range of other train operators and our Network Rail members.
“The results show that our members are determined to fight for their wages, jobs and conditions through strike action or non-strike action, meaning they cannot cover other union members taking strike action.
“They are right to do this amid the escalating Tory cost of living and with a chaotic government determined to make drastic cuts to our rail network as inflation rages on.
“It would be unwise for a railway company to ignore the sentiments of our membership. We are already in discussions with workplace representatives about the next steps in this dispute.
“If ministers had any idea, they would come to the table to sort this out so that we have a fair settlement for workers hailed as heroes during the pandemic.”
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “The railways need reform and modernisation, and yesterday the RMT was offered a fair deal that would see their members’ salaries increase by up to 8% after two years to deliver just that.
“Yet the RMT has already opted for more destructive strikes and is determined to bring even more misery to people across the country.
“The average railway worker already earns £44,000, significantly more than the people most affected by their strike – the same people who raised £600 per household to keep the railway going during the pandemic and ensure that no one their job is lost.
“However, it is now clear that no deal would ever be good enough for the RMT, and the negotiations over the past few weeks have been just for show as they plan how best to cause further chaos.
“Chaos has been cynically timed for the day before the Commonwealth Games begin, in an effort to disrupt the journey of thousands trying to attend an event that the whole country has been looking forward to.
“The industry is already alive and by insisting on working against its employers, rather than with them, the RMT is threatening to pull the plug for good.”
Andrew Haines, Chief Executive of Network Rail, said: “It is incredibly frustrating that the RMT has once again chosen to disrupt our passengers, and even more so that they have not even offered their members a fair and affordable two-year offer. .
“It is also deeply disturbing that these strikes are clearly intended to disrupt spectators en route to the opening of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on July 28, an event of major national importance.
“We’ve been clear that we can only fund an increase from our own budgets, and the only way we can afford that is by modernizing the way we work.
“The RMT’s rejection of our latest offer can only mean they want a pay rise funded by more taxpayers or higher passenger fares, neither of which we believe is fair.
“We urge the RMT to call off this action, sit down with us again and show some willingness to compromise.”
The TSSA has announced that its members at Avanti West Coast will also go on strike on July 27, in celebration of the RMT action.
The members deal with customers, tickets and performing platform tasks.
Avanti – the mainline operator on the west coast – was the first of a dozen train companies plus Network Rail to be successfully cleared for union action by TSSA over pay, job security and benefits.
Mr Cortes said: “I have been clear from the start – our members are determined to fight for their pay, jobs and conditions.
“That is why this strike at Avanti is necessary and only taken as a last resort after the employer failed to make a new offer, even though we announced the result of our strike vote at the end of June.
“We have a government determined to make sweeping cuts to our rail network in the face of a cost of living crisis and not even give Avanti and other companies the bargaining power needed to find a settlement that is fair to our members.
“Ministers in this chaotic Conservative government would do well to sit up now and take note as our members are serious and have shown they mean it.
“These are the same people who were hailed as heroes during the pandemic and now see their wages, jobs and conditions threatened. Our union will support them to the fullest, and this is just the beginning.
“Our requirements are simple: no mandatory severance pay, a wage increase in line with inflation and no unforeseen changes in terms and conditions.
“We are always ready to negotiate, but only on a serious basis. Our door is open, but as things stand, we are now facing the reality of a summer of discontent with our railways.”
On Twitter, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps wrote: “Yesterday @RMTunion was offered a wage agreement of up to 8% over 2 years.
“Today their leadership rejected it without even presenting it to their members and instead called another strike.
“RMT bosses are not interested in finding a solution, they just want to cause misery to the traveling public.”