I have just received news that London Underground workers who are members of the Unions RMT, ASLEF, Unite & TSSA will be going on strike on the evening of Wednesday 8th July, and throughout the day on Thursday 9th July.
TFL have posted the following on their website:
RMT, Unite and TSSA members are planning 24-hour strike action on the Tube from 18:30 on Wednesday 8 July. ASLEF drivers are also planning 24-hour strike action on the Tube from 21:30 on Wednesday 8 July. DLR, London Overground and TfL Rail staff are not on strike.
Advice for customers
If the strike goes ahead, there will be no Tube service from late afternoon on Wednesday 8 July and no Tube service at all on Thursday 9 July. All other public transport services and roads will be much busier than usual, so please check before you travel.
Below is what the unions are saying about the strike.
From RMT:
Our Ref: LUL/14/5
2nd July 2015
To all London Underground Station Staff Members
Dear Colleagues
Every Job Matters – Defending Jobs on London Underground
This week you and your colleagues voted massively in favour of industrial action in our dispute to defend your jobs and conditions. As you know, we have been in dispute with London Underground since 2014 over their proposals for stations which would see massive job losses and a wide-ranging restructuring of your grade. Following a sustained period of industrial action we were able to force LU to put their plans on hold to allow detailed discussions with your reps. Frankly these discussions were a sham and LUL are now pressing full steam ahead with a massive attack on your jobs and conditions.
Over 800 jobs will be lost leaving staff overworked and stations understaffed. Staffing levels are being cut to the bone with more weekend and nightworking but they have ignored our real and genuine concerns about fatigue and unsociable hours so we have strongly rejected their roster proposals. The increase in lone working in particular has serious safety implications when, as we all know, assaults on staff are a serious risk, particularly during late shifts. On top of this their plans will allow managers to move station staff around almost at will with only 24 hours notice, all under the banner of “flexibility”. This “flexibility” would also allow them to force you to cover Higher Grade work without any enhanced pay, all of which will result in a casualised workforce.
The reality is that London Underground have rushed headlong into a huge cuts programme which will leave an exhausted, under resourced workforce trying to maintain a safe service. The General Grades Committee has considered the ballot result and the clear will of members and has decided to call Station Staff members to take strike action and industrial action short of a strike which is outlined as follows: -
All Station Grades members are instructed not to book on for any shift that commences between: -
• 18:30 hours on Wednesday 8th July 2015 until 18:29 hours on the Thursday 9th July 2015.
Also, all Station Grades are instructed not to carry out any overtime from 21:30 hours on Thursday 9th July 2015 until further notice.
The strong mandate you have delivered sends a clear message to LUL that their plans are totally unacceptable. I urge you and your colleagues to stand firm during the industrial action. Management cannot be left in any doubt that Station Staff are united and determined to fight against the unacceptable job losses, unacceptable displacements, unacceptable rosters, and unacceptable changes to your terms and conditions.
STAND FIRM
UNITY IS STRENGTH
Yours sincerely
Mick Cash
General Secretary
Here is what I can find from ASLEF, and their thoughts regarding the London Underground changes.
ASLEF's response to LU's Night Tube map:
21 Jun 2015
London Underground tomorrow launches its official Night Tube map in a blaze of publicity - knowing full well that it won't be able to implement its proposals unless it sits down and does a deal with the men and women it wants to drive the trains through the night.
Finn Brennan, ASLEF's District Organiser for the Tube, said: 'It’s easy enough to produce a map, but if London Underground management want to have an all night service in September, then they need to sit down and negotiate a fair deal for the staff they expect to provide it.
'Last week train drivers on London Underground voted by a record 97% to strike over London Underground's refusal to negotiate on new rosters that would mean they could have to work an unlimited number of weekend and night shifts for no extra pay.
'We aren't opposed to all night services, but they have to be introduced in a way that is fair and protects the work/life balance of the hard-working staff who have delivered the improved service that Underground management boast of.'
London Underground said: 'The new map has been designed to show customers clearly which Tube lines and stations will operate 24-hour services from the early hours of 12 September 2015, transforming night time journeys across London for millions of people. As the most visited city in the world, London will be joining just a handful of other top world cities, including New York and Berlin, which also provide metro services through the night. The new services will help to maintain London's status as a vibrant and exciting place to live, work and visit.'
From Unite Union:
Unite’s Tube workers vote for strike action in all-night services row
30 June 2015
London Underground workers, members of Unite, the country’s largest union, have voted strongly in favour of strike action in a dispute over the introduction of all-night Tube services from September.
Unite, which represents about 250 electrical and maintenance technicians, linesmen and signallers, voted by 70 per cent for strike action and 84 per cent for industrial action short of a strike in the dispute which also includes other issues such as a decent pay rise, jobs and safety. The turnout was 82 per cent.
Unite and the other Tube trade unions are currently in talks with the conciliation service Acas to resolve the dispute before a planned 24-hour strike starting next Wednesday evening (8 July). More talks at Acas are due tomorrow (Wednesday 1 July).
Unite regional officer Hugh Roberts said: “Unite members working on the Tube have voted robustly in favour of strike action and there is a strong impetus for London Underground management to reach an equitable settlement through talks at Acas.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Unite is Britain and Ireland’s largest trade union with over 1.4 million members working across all sectors of the economy. The general secretary is Len McCluskey.
From TSSA:
LUL: Prepare for Strike Action
2 July 2015
Following members’ 3 to 1 vote in favour of strike action, TSSA has called a 24 hour strike alongside RMT, ASLEF and Unite. The strike will begin at 18.30 on Wednesday, 8 July.
Staff who would otherwise book on for any shift between 18:30 hours on 8 July 2015 until 18:29 hours on 9 July 2015 are instructed by the General Secretary not to do so.
Talks between LUL management and the recognised trade unions have restarted following movement by LUL. They are ongoing and you will be kept fully updated of any developments. TSSA is doing whatever we can to make progress towards a fair and acceptable resolution to this dispute, but we are committed to protecting the pay, terms & conditions and working practices of our members. We must prepare for strike action next week and ensure a strong presence on picket lines to send a clear message to LUL management. All TSSA Reps at LUL have been are asked to co-ordinate picket lines in your areas.
I find it interesting to see how the London Underground Unions unite to strike in order to get their point across. This time it’s about the ‘Night Tube’ service which London Underground are starting on the 12th September 2015. If the strike goes ahead, London Buses will end up contracting bus companies around the surrounding areas of London to add more buses onto the busiest routes of the London Bus network. So for enthusiasts', this may be your day to photograph/video the ‘extra’ buses during the Tube Strike.
I thought I would put this article together to gather all the 'strike' information in one place so that Londoners have the information they need regarding travel.
Things are getting interesting now.
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