Train drivers vote to end 'longest strike in history' as pay offer accepted

Train drivers have voted overwhelmingly to end a two-year dispute across 16 UK rail companies with the acceptance of a multi-year pay offer.

Train drivers' union Aslef said 96% of its members voted in favour of the deal, which was made by the new Labour Government, with a turnout of 84%. The union said the offer was worth 15% over three years, is backdated and pensionable, and includes drivers who retired or left the industry during the dispute.

The ballot result ends what Aslef called the longest train drivers' strike in recent history during which drivers took 18 days of strike action, sparking widespread travel disruption for millions of passengers. Aslef had accused the previous Conservative government of "sitting on its hands" and refusing to negotiate.

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During the dispute, 13,000 drivers took strike action as well as refusing to work non-contractual overtime at 16 companies: Avanti West Coast, Chiltern, C2C, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Greater Anglia, Great Northern Thameslink, Great Western Railway, LNER, Northern, Southeastern, Southern/Gatwick Express, South Western Railway and Island Line, TransPennine Express, and West Midlands Trains.

Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said: “It is with great pleasure that we can announce the end of the longest train drivers’ strike in history. The strength and resilience and determination shown by train drivers to protect their hard-won and paid-for terms and conditions against the political piracy of an inept and destructive Tory government has prevailed.

“It was not a fight we sought, or wanted. All we sought after five years without a pay rise, working for private companies who, throughout that period, declared millions of pounds in profits and dividends to shareholders, was a dent in the cost of living.”

He went on: “We are grateful that Louise Haigh, the Secretary of State for Transport, and the adults entered the room and sought an equitable way forward so that trains will perform and run in the interest of the passenger, of the taxpayer and of those who work in and are dedicated to this industry. Those who have been lying about this pay offer, and conflating the deal offered to train drivers with decisions on the winter fuel allowance, should be ashamed.

“Although it seems to be the work of those who would not accurately report anything about train drivers over the past two years. Now we will get back to our day job of seeking a green, well-invested, vertically-integrated and safe public railway.”

Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said: “After two years of chaos on our railways under the Conservatives, this is an important step towards fixing our railways and getting the country moving again. It will ensure a more reliable service by helping to protect passengers from national strikes, and crucially, it clears the way for vital reform – including modernising outdated working practices – to ensure a better performing railway for everyone.

“We have inherited a £22 billion blackhole in the nation’s finances. Every decision taken is to stabilise the economy and protect working people. The cost of not settling would significantly outstrip the cost of this below-inflation deal.”

She added: “We won’t make the same mistake as the Conservatives, who deliberately prolonged disputes resulting in the longest strike in the history of the railways – costing our economy and the taxpayer more than £1 billion. This Labour Government will always put passengers and taxpayers first.”