RMT announces national rail strike dates involving maintenance and signals staff

RAIL UNION RMT announced today that following the failure of Network Rail to offer anything conclusive aimed at resolving disputes involving signalling and maintenance staff, after hours of talks, members will be taking industrial action:-

Signalling staff:

Strike action between 06.00 and 10.00 hours and between 18.00 and 22.00 hours on the 6th, 7th and 8th and 9th of April.

Maintenance (infrastructure) staff:

Strike action from 06.00 hours on Tuesday 6th April to 23.59 hours on Friday 9th of April.

An overtime ban, ban on rest day working and a ban on on-call duties to be in force throughout this period for both groups of staff running through to 06.00 hours on Saturday 10th April.

RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said:

“RMT negotiators have worked flat out to try and reach an agreement that protects rail safety, job security and working agreements in the disputes involving signalling and maintenance staff on Britain’s railways. Despite long hours of talks we have received nothing concrete from Network Rail that addresses the key issues.

“It remains the case that Network Rail, in a drive to slash 21% from their budget, want to axe 1500 maintenance posts, lump maintenance functions onto over-worked signallers, rip up agreements and impose changes that will quite clearly undermine safety across our railways and make another Hatfield, Potters Bar or Grayrigg disaster an inevitability.

“RMT members could not sit back and wait for Network Rail to drag our industry back to the dark days of Rail Track with their cash-driven cuts plans. We have decided to stand up and fight and the ball is now in Network Rail’s court to come back with meaningful proposals aimed at resolving these disputes.”