London tube union announces strike dates

Rail union RMT today announced London tube workers will strike for six days in June and July, after tube companies failed to give assurances on jobs, pay and working conditions.  

RMT said union members will strike from 7pm on Wednesday 23 June to 7pm on Friday 25 June, and 7pm Wednesday 14 July to 7pm Friday 16 July.

The union said the strike will have severe consequences on the whole tube network as the Emergency Response Unit, which deals with urgent repairs, is run by Tube Lines on behalf of the whole London Underground.

Bob Crow, RMT general secretary, said Transport For London (TFL), and their newly-acquired subsidiary Tube Lines, have failed to give assurances that staff won’t take the hit for the failure of the doomed privatisation project.

This month TFL took over the maintenance and upgrade work from Tube Lines, paying shareholders £310 million for their equity, after TL was criticised for falling behind schedule.

However, Crow said: ‘If the shareholders of Tube Lines, who failed miserably to meet the terms of their agreement, can walk away with £310 million of Londoners cash in a “golden-goodbye”, after milking the contract for every penny, why should our members be expected to take a kick in the teeth on jobs, pay and working conditions?’

‘We are already seeing clear signs that maintenance schedules on Tube Lines are being hacked to the bone and that situation will only deteriorate, with dire consequences for the travelling public, if more jobs are axed’, he added.

A spokesperson for TFL said: ‘As the RMT leadership knows, we do not currently control Tube Lines. We are working to conclude the acquisition of the company by the end of June'.

'We strongly urge RMT leadership to call off the threatened strike action and to enter proper dialogue with us after our acquisition of Tube Lines', TFL added.

Earlier this week over 92% of members of privately owned Tube Lines voted in favour of a strike or other industrial action.

The news comes as BT union announced it will press ahead with plans to hold a strike ballot, after rejecting the telecoms company’s revised pay offer.

Meanwhile, British Airways cabin crew today entered the final day in the last of a series of five-day walkouts over pay, working conditions and travel perks.