What do people think about rail strikes?

[ITUnurse]

I cannot find any threads on the rail strikes / opinion of them.

I personally do support the strikes. We in the NHS will face a similar struggle shortly. I support the rights of workers to strike. Conditions at the moment are dire.

However, if England is so right wing and strikes aren't supported and the Tories continue to be voted in. I've not seen much public support online except from a few and I'm at risk of being in an echo chamber.

Ultimately if England is so under the thumb of the tories, I'm not sure what the long term solution is. The rest of the UK doesn't return the Tories in such numbers.

If you don't support strike action, what do you think the rail workers, NHS workers etc should do? We've already got people leaving enmasse. It's difficult to comment on the conditions of a job you don't work in and nurses regularly get gaslighted on here I am genuinely concerned as to what is going to happen to the public sector of the UK with this right wing stranglehold.

Thanks

Completely support the strike! .
Come the glorious day brothers....
And it will come people have had enough!

@BlackbirdsSinging wtaf? The rail networks are currently profit making companies. It is only in their benefit to keep
wages low. It is nothing to do with inflation

Fully support them.

There will be further strikes in other sectors and quite rightly so.

I completely support their decision to strike. I had to find a way back from Devon last weekend due to the rail strikes, and I still 💯 support them! It isn’t just about wages

100% behind them.

The current inflation isn't caused by factors that would be exacerbated by rising wages for working people blackbirds.

It's not demand driven price increase, its supply restriction.

It's not that everyone going out with more money in their pockets will push up prices due to increased demand.

"Increasing wages perpetuated inflation" is a line the government roll out because to state reality would be to admit that they don't really have any way at all to stem or control the current inflation, and no one likes the sound of that so they avoid saying it.

The recent rail and underground strikes I'm unable to support. Those striking clearly do not consider the impacts on others who are now losing money due to strikes. Walking from Euston to liverpool street on friday you could see the impact of the strikes on businesses. These are the same businesses struggling to recover post pandemic.

Those of us who aren't able to drive due to health rely on public transport to live a normal life.

I fully support rail workers
I work for the nhs and we will likely be striking soon

I support their right to strike/unionise to negotiate better pay and terms but a chunk of the current issue is wanting to preserve all the same jobs as if technology had never happened. Its unproductive and simply drives unnecessary costs onto the the customer.

There's a ticket office in my local station. The lady just sits there doing nothing most days as there are machines outside and almost everyone now buys their ticket on an app. As a customer, I don't want my ticket price pushed up by the cost of paying a bored lady to sit drinking cups of tea all day.

There's all this talk of guards on trains but I never see them!

I support them. I would also like to see railways renationalised.

...and sisters? Don't forget the sisters.

Fully support the strike action. Where I am, the bus drivers have just finished a month long strike and managed to achieve their goal. As a non driver, this has caused me some inconvenience getting to and from work but I remained very much in support.

Had so many conversations with people against the strike (most of them also able to drive so not in any way inconvenienced). They didn't think it was fair as they aren't able to strike themselves and have to be satisfied with the wages they are given. I cant understand this mindset at all. Why are we all so quick to want to drag people down instead of looking up at those making massive profits and asking why they won't share when they have plenty to go around?

I fully support anyone striking, especially these massive companies. Too many employers put profits over paying staff a good wage. The way the country is going I can see nationwide strikes this year. I think Mick Lynch & Eddie Dempsy are doing a brilliant job fighting for their members & dealing with the media, both speak well & can back up their arguments with facts. I saw a video of Mick Lynch speaking at an Enough is Enough event & he spoke passionately about why we need to stand up to the government at this time.

I don't support it, no.

That "offer" comes with more strings attached than the whole cast of Thunderbirds.

And no, they wouldn't be getting an 8% rise. The overall package actually works out as a cut in their hourly rate, and the difference in gross pay for the average maintenance worker is 21p per week.

Inflation is running away anyway, even though the whole public sector (except for certain privileged individuals in senior roles) has seen real-terms pay cuts for the last decade.

Then go and apply a set of pliers to Grant Shapps' soft tissue and persuade him to be more reasonable. He's the one refusing to let the employers have anything to offer.

I fully support the strikes.

Fully support, it’s not a race to the bottom. If they get good conditions of employment it serves as a benchmark for others.

Interesting you use the word 'low'

I don't think strike action benefits railway staff any more.

We held an international conference in Cambridgeshire on the 2nd day of strike action, but it didn't cause us any problems at all. So many people can work at home that very few even noticed the trains weren't working. Staff drove on the abnormally empty roads. we even had someone get an uber 60 miles, who found that it cost less and was more convenient than getting the train. International delegates simply travelled the day before or VC'd in.

All the other strike days we've just worked from home.

If strike action causes no disruption, there is no pressure to get the strike resolved and the striking staff are just hurting themselves.

I don't know what the answer is.

I don't support them. If you don't like your wages just quit and find another job, but don't fuck over all the people dependent on your services.

Why strike? Your employer doesn't owe you anything. If you want a raise just ask for it. If they don't agree, hand in your notice.

My understanding is that the notion that wage increases will fuel inflation is Tory propaganda. What’s fuelling wage increases is primarily the energy crisis, exacerbated by labour and commodity shortages. These are caused by global issues (and maybe Brexit - some debate on that).

I never clapped for the key workers, but I bet a lot of people on here who don’t support striking,, did.
Whilst they were on furlough
Very surprised by the number of people I’ve spoken to who think people on strike get paid for the days they are striking
I also find it amusing that people on here think everyone has a ticket and uses the train nicely
The statistics for people travelling without a ticket outside of London are very high