Advertisement

Tube Strike 'Definitely' Going Ahead This Week

Tube Strike 'Definitely' Going Ahead This Week

A Tube strike will "definitely go ahead" this week because unions have not been given enough time to study a new pay offer, a senior negotiator has warned.

RMT, Unite and TSSA union members are planning strike action for 24 hours from 6.30pm on Wednesday evening.

Aslef union members, which include the majority of London Tube drivers, will begin their strike at 9.30pm the same day.

London Underground put forward a "full and final" offer on Monday afternoon, including a 2% pay rise this year and £2,000 for drivers on the new all-night service.

It gave the unions until 6.30pm today to respond.

Finn Brennan, Aslef's senior negotiator said the unions were prepared to return for talks tomorrow but were being told the new offer will be off the table by then.

He said: "This is playground negotiating. Having made no offer for three months, they give four unions one afternoon to consider a new offer.

"The strike will definitely go ahead - the company has said the offer is off the table at 6.30pm."

It is the first time Aslef members have been included in significant strike action for more than a decade, as most previous strikes largely involved station workers rather than train drivers.

With all four Tube unions involved in the walkout it is feared the underground system will be brought to a complete halt, resulting in what could easily be the worst disruption to the transport network in London since 2002.

Tubes will be unavailable on all lines from late afternoon on Wednesday, with trains resuming on Friday morning.

The strike is a result of disputes over the introduction of night services in September, as well as the annual pay package offered to Transport for London (TfL) workers.

Union members claim that the pay increase of 0.75% being offered to TfL staff this year is insufficient, and say they are not being adequately compensated for the increase in night shifts which will come with the beginning of 24-hour Tube services.

In a message to London Underground staff, chief operating officer Steve Griffiths, said Monday's offer was "fair and competitive" but would not be on the table for long.

"I have asked the trade unions to let me have their response by 6.30pm today.

"I have set this deadline so that if industrial action is called off we can plan to provide the best possible service to our customers this week.

"Should the industrial action go ahead, our revenue will be affected and therefore the offer will no longer be viable," he stated.

Mr Griffiths has previously insisted the Night Tube would benefit both Londoners and London businesses.

"Most of our staff will not be affected by the new services at all because it affects only five of eleven lines," he said.

"Some staff will actually work fewer nights than they do now because we have hired 137 more train operators specifically for the Night Tube."

The DLR, London Overground and most rail services will still be running on Wednesday and Thursday but are expected to be much busier than usual.

:: First Great Western trains to and from London Paddington will face disruption due to separate strike action, also due to begin on Wednesday evening, that will last 48 hours. The RMT said on Monday that talks had broken down.