Tubeworker's blog

"Flash and dash" roster chaos

On the Jubilee Line, management have brought in "flash and dash" rosters at Wembley Park, Willesden Green and West Hampstead, meaning there are not enough station staff to detrain trains.

Unfortunately for management, train drivers on the line, and across LU, are refusing to "flash and dash" as it...

Building a mood on LUL pay

We were due a pay rise on LUL in April 2023. Negotiations are ongoing, with LUL's latest offer standing at 4%. So far no union has gone into dispute or begun preparations for a ballot.

We must not let management dictate the pace. Allowing negotiations to drag on and on only benefits the company...

Unite members on LUL to join July strikes

Unite has announced that its members on London Underground will be joining RMT and Aslef members on strike on 26 and 28 July.

Unite has a small membership on LUL, mainly in engineering depots, partially a legacy of some of the old engineering unions that merged to form Amicus, which then merged...

Build for week of Tube strikes, and follow up!

The RMT union has called a week of selective strikes from 23 July in the ongoing London Underground dispute over jobs, pensions, and conditions, with workers in different functions striking at different times (see below for details). Aslef has also named strikes on 26 and 28 July, the days RMT train...

Tube bosses unveil “attendance” plans

It's over three months since we took any strike action. The momentum has been very much with the bosses in that time - although they've been pushed back slightly on CSA job cuts on stations, they've announced a new raft of cuts in the CSM grade and are pressing ahead with "Trains Modernisation", job...

June-July edition of Tubeworker now online

The latest edition of Tubeworker bulletin, collating content from our blog, is now online.

This edition argues for an immediate ballot over LUL pay, and reflects on our recent meeting on why LGBT+ equality is a union issue.

Click here to download the PDF.

OT ban pushed as bosses budge on jobs

RMT has suspended an overtime and rest day working plan on LUL stations, due to run from 25 June to 1 July, after bosses budged in talks about jobs cut in a recent rosters and staffing review.

LUL had carried out a programme of 600 job cuts across Tube stations. The company insisted that the jobs...

London Overground revenue staff to ballot

RMT is balloting members in revenue grades on Arriva Rail London (London Overground).

Workers have had a number of concerns about workplace issues ignored, and, after a collective grievance was brushed under the carpet, are taking the next step by moving to ballot.

The vote ends on 11 July.

Union sounds alarm on 4LM

RMT safety reps have raised a number of safety concerns with Thales' "Four Lines Modernisation" (4LM) signaling system, due to convert the Sub-Surface Railway (District, Hammersmith & City, Circle, and Metropolitan lines) to automatic signaling.

The project has been plagued with waste and errors...

No "work notices"!

The Tories’ “Minimum Service Levels” Bill, aimed at restricting the right to strike even further, is bouncing between the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

Given the Tories’ majority, it is likely to pass at some point. It gives the government the power to set a “minimum service levels” in...

Protection workers take fight to City Hall

Dozens of protection workers took their fight for better pay, improved working conditions, and direct employment to City Hall on 8 June.

The lively protest followed several well-attended meetings where a charter of demands was drawn up. LUL needs to bring these workers in house, and the rest of the...

Why LGBT+ equality is a union issue

At our monthly Tubeworker meeting on 15 June, we heard from RMT LGBT+ activist Cat Cray, and Clive Bradley, an activist with Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM) during the 1984/5 miners’ strike.

We discussed how LGBT+ workers are still discriminated against on the basis of their sexuality...

LUL pay: ballot now!

LUL’s latest pay offer to our unions is for a 4% increase, covering 2023-2024.

The amount is well below inflation. The RPI rate of inflation in April 2023, the point at which our previous pay settlement expired, was 11.4%. A pay rise that is less than the rate of inflation is a pay cut.

Although...

Make commitment to equality and inclusion a reality

The latest On The Move features articles on various aspects of TfL's EDI (Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion) agenda.

We don't want to be too sniffy about this stuff... we still work in a largely male-dominated industry, which is overwhelmingly white in many sectors. The fact that our employers are...

Cut top bosses' pay!

The Standard reports that the number of TfL and Crossrail employees earning over £100,000 has increased to 766, up from 597 in 2021/22.

As usual, the Standard uses this story to amplify Tory attacks on Sadiq Khan. The Tories probably think all 766 of the high earners are train drivers...

The...

May-June edition of Tubeworker now online

The latest edition of the printed version of our bulletin is now online.

It collates stories from the blog, and has some extra material too. This month's edition argues for escalated action following RMT's excellent re-ballot result.

Download the PDF here.

Will Aslef strike again?

Aslef, the majority drivers' union, has held an industrial action mandate on London Underground continuously for over two years. They've used it just once - striking alongside RMT (and many other unions) on 15 March.

With the company's attacks on drivers' conditions picking up pace, surely it's...

Strike mandate renewed: now call action!

RMT members on London Underground have voted to renew our industrial action mandate for another six months, voting by a 96% majority on a 56% turnout.

The increased turnout reflects the hard work reps did to ensure ballot returns, as well as the fact that, since our last ballot, LUL has intensified...

3.3%? In the bin.

The first round of negotiations have now taken place, and LUL has offered unions the princely sum of 3.3% for our 2023/4 pay rise. They’ve dismissed claims for a reduction in the working week out of hand as “unaffordable”.

3.3% is miles behind inflation - currently at 13.5% at the time of writing...

Trains change plans are attacks on a scale unseen for a generation

London Underground’s "Train Change" plan is an attack on a scale not seen by most drivers in the grade. The last threatened change on this scale was perhaps when guards were ditched or "Company Plan" implemented, both before this writer's time on the job. Other grades have seen such attacks, "Fit...

Union pressure wins minimum number increase at Vauxhall

The RMT had a massive win at Vauxhall station, when on 7 May the minimum staffing number, which stipulates the legally required minimum number of staff to keep the station open was increased, both during the week and at weekends.

This was achieved through the hard work of the local RMT H&S rep, in...

The unseen army of low-paid workers

An article in the Evening Standard has highlighted the role of the “unseen army of modern-day, minimum wage” cleaning workers who work to remove dust from the tracks during engineering hours.

While the article called attention to some of the health risks the workers face, the only person actually...

Track protection workers get organised

Track protection workers help keep other workers safe when they're working on the track. It's a vital role, but those who perform it often face low pay and precarious conditions. Many track protection workers are not employed directly by LUL, but outsourced to agencies like Cleshar and Morsons.

RMT...

Toilet trouble

The latest edition of TfL's in-house mag On The Move proudly reports on the improvements to staff facilities that've been made in various areas.

All well and good, but staff at locations with major, and long-running, problems with staff facilities might be justified in feeling a bit left out...

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