Rail unions

The Tubeworker campaign for reserve / cover staff, was given a boost on the 19th of May. At a meeting of the Stations Functional Committee, the management agreed that 28 days notice of duties must be given and changes can not be made to those duties without consulting the staff concerned first. Management agreed to send out a joint Management-Union briefing explaining the rights of cover staff. They also agreed that the practice of telling staff that their duties had changed, rather than asking them if they would mind changing, must stop immediately. This is a major move forward for our...

This resolution has been adopted by Finsbury Park branch RMT. This branch believes that the fascist British National Party is fundamentally an anti-working-class party: it is also racist, anti-semitic, sexist and homophobic. Everything that the BNP stands for is against the interests of the labour and trade union movement. This branch notes that the BNP already has 17 councillors and is poised to make further electoral breakthroughs in the coming elections. We believe that two of the main factors that have enabled the BNP to grow are: 1. The Labour Government's betrayal of working-class people...

RMT press release, 7 May RMT TUBE driver Chris Barrett was unfairly dismissed by London Underground, the employment tribunal has ruled. "Chris Barrett and his union have been vindicated," RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today. "I would like to pay tribute to all those colleagues who stood solidly by Chris, despite an ugly campaign of vilification by sections of the media. "We maintained from the start that Chris did not receive a fair hearing and that LUL was failing to observe its own procedures. "The case also raises some serious civil liberties issues, including the leaking of...

Probably the two biggest issues for Tube workers are pay and conditions, and the way the company treats us when we are sick. Both these issues have come to a head, and Tubeworker puts the case for a fight on both. Workplace reports include air conditioning, disciplinary procedures, and a call for solidarity with the looming strike on Network Rail. You can read and download it here .

By a an RMT member The RMT has called a ballot for industrial action of its 7,000 members at Network Rail. These workers include signalling, maintenance and station staff. The ballot over the closure of the final salary pension scheme, pay, and travel facilities, will run from 27 April to 17 May. It raises the prospect of the first national rail stoppage in a decade. Signal staff will be the cutting edge in this dispute, and it is important to get the right strategy for this action from the start. During the last signalworkers' dispute the RMT did not ballot supervisory staff and they were...

For years, Tube workers have been deeply unhappy with an 'attendance' policy which punishes people for being ill. Now, the company has rewritten the policy. As RMT reps meet on Monday to look at and discuss the new draft, Tubeworker offers our views on what sort of policy we want, and what sort of campaign we want our union to run. You can read and download it here .

By a RMT member Talks have broken down between the railworkers' Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union and employers Network Rail over pay, pensions and travel facilities. The RMT executive will meet soon to discuss a national ballot of the union's 7,000 Network Rail members, who include signalling, maintenance and station staff. "The company has imposed a pension scheme for new entrants that is no better than a glorified savings plan subject to the whims of the market," said RMT general secretary Bob Crow. "Their pay offer of 3% is the lowest in the rail industry, and they have refused to...

In the aftermath of the killing of 200 railway passengers in Madrid, Tubeworker condemns the bombers. It also argues that the US-led military alliance can not defeat terrorist-fundamentalism: only working-class solidarity can do that. This issue tells readers the latest developments in our campaign for a better deal for reserve and pool staff. It also questions RMT's decision to call off the Metronet strike, and reports on workplace issues from the latest pay talks to improvements in privilege travel facilities. View PDF and download it here .

Rail union RMT suspended strike action by Metronet maintenance and signal workers, scheduled for 12 March. RMT members had voted 5:1 for action in support of colleagues sacked despite the lack of evidence linking them to beer cans allegedly found in a mess room at Farringdon station. "After considering the undertaking by Metronet to abide by the outcome of an Employment Tribunal, the RMT executive has today suspended the strike action scheduled for tomorrow," RMT general secretary Bob Crow told the press. "We understand that the president of the Tribunals has undertaken to do everything within...

According to a posting on the Scottish Socialist Party's email list, the RMT's Wrecsam branch has voted to affiliate to Cymru Ymlaen (Forward Wales). RMT general secretary Bob Crow attended the branch meeting. Reports on Cymru Ymlaen such as this one from The Socialist , 15/11/03 indicate that it eschews any class politics and instead defines itself as "centre-left" and Welsh nationalist. This reinforces the need for the upcoming RMT AGM to define positive working-class criteria for the union's future political activities.