Christmas train strikes

[Darthwazette]

AIBU to wish the train strike situation could just be sorted out?

Theyve just announced strikes right over Christmas. My family were coming to stay with me and now they can’t. I’ve had to cancel so many visits and trips since these strikes began. I wish they’d just reach an agreement already.

Nasty cunts. Are we, as the public, supposed to respect unions despite this overt bullying, controlling and aggressive behaviou?

Not convenient, not helpful but fully support the rail workers. Struggled to get back up north via avanti last week who are now so unreliable you can't use them but the government won't act there. Mick lynch talks alot of sense.and the government as usual are failing to negotiate just bullying and spinning. I wonder how many strikes.it.will take to remove them? We have rail, courts, nurses, paramedics, mail all going out and most other health professions about to.go too. The.only comman denominator here is the government. That says it all.

Actually Mick Lynch is donating his pay on strike days to the strike fund. A man with integrity.

That’s not what they’re striking about - the unions are their to defend jobs, pay and conditions. Not to defend the service for passengers. Obviously it helps to the public on side by highlighting areas of the dispute that align with passengers interests, but to be honest I think given the choice many people would take cheaper fares and fewer staff.

That’s not to diminish the role of the unions - they have an important role but it’s not defending passengers rights.

I think unions can be unreasonable but that’s necessary when organisations behave unreasonably too. Basically capitalism sucks.

I feel for people negatively effected by the strike, but it isn't true to say the strike will have no effect. Striking has brought about some significant steps forwards in workers rights in the past that we all benefit from (equal pay for women being one).

I support the railworkers. No one strikes without significant reason. I hope they get what they are asking for.

I think it will come because the privatisation project has so clearly failed. The taxpayer is losing out, the passenger is losing out, the worker is losing out - only the shareholders are benefitting. It is an easy area of renationalisation - as each TOC fails, do not renew.

carefulcalculator · Today 23:23

Figmentofmyimagination · Today 22:46

There is a high level of public support for rail renationalisation, which I agree with the RMT is a very good idea.
fullfact.org/economy/do-public-want-railways-renationalised/

I think it will come because the privatisation project has so clearly failed. The taxpayer is losing out, the passenger is losing out, the worker is losing out - only the shareholders are benefitting. It is an easy area of renationalisation - as each TOC fails, do not renew

They can start with the disaster that is Avanti!. The west coast form london to Glasgow would be thrilled!

What is this used for?

Username11122 it goes to a hardship fund for those in extreme financial difficulties

Not always, you have to apply to a hardship fund and a committee decides if you get funds.

As an aside, I am an RMT ‘twunt’ (cheers for that) who is up at this time ready to go to my FT rail job. For which I earn less than half of what the media claim is the ‘median’ salary on the railway.

To be fair, given how bad services at my operator were over the summer (critically overcrowded with people left behind), I started saying that I was a P&O executive as it was less embarrassing.

Then Avanti fell apart and my employer didn't seem so bad after all.

Wages have to be high and conditions good to retain staff (training replacements would be expensive). TPE are losing drivers hand over fist to freight hauliers.

I travel a lot from Euston to Chester or to Liverpool and since it changed to Avanti it’s been diabolical. There are very few direct trains now from London to Chester - and vice versa, which is really inconvenient, especially when I’ve got my dog and have to change at Crewe. I’ve never heard a good word said about Avanti. It’s almost as bad as Southern rail. Almost. But not quiet

"It seems to me that the people affected by the strikes have absolutely no control over what deal the unions can broker. Therefore I don’t think striking serves any point and all it does is spread misery and ensures that people with a choice increasingly avoid using the service."

I am sorry for the inconvenience to your dh but I think you are wrong that striking serves no purpose and many on here would do well to educate themselves on how striking has improved working conditions over the years.

I would start by electrifying. Electric trains with brushless AC motors require far less maintenance and far less energy cost than diesel. They also cause no pollution at the point of use, which would improve air quality in our cities (anyone been to Birmingham New Street) and help towards net zero targets. By massively improving acceleration they cause a "sparks effect" which really drives up demand.

It requires capital investment of course but the long term gains are significant.

Demand is down and the vast majority of passengers would prefer lower fares and less pointless ticket office staff. If the catering on board isn't profitable, then it needs to be shut down. Someone working in train catering should be able to get a job in normal retail/hospitality fairly easily at the moment. Its ridiculous they are expecting to get a pay rise/no redundancies when less people are using the service.

I completely support nurses, docs, teachers striking. But not the rail workers and plenty of people feel the same.

Every household subsidises the railways by £500 even though of course the vast majority don’t use them. Every job advertised is massively oversubscribed, there’s no problem with getting staff. They are extremely well paid for what they do. None of them lost money during the pandemic, on 100% of salary unlike many of the poor sods who pay for them.

They are a bunch of dinosaurs living in the seventies. They’ve lost loads of customers since the pandemic but expect to be paid vastly more. Just unbelievable that they think they should be indulged at the expense of others.

That's nothing compared with the Great Strike of Penrhyn. Generations later there were still families still not on speaking terms, and that was an all-out strike starting in November 1900 that lasted for three years.

Nid oes bradwr yn y tŷ hwn

D'uh! The members of a union vote whether to strike. Did you really not know this?

No one holds a pistol at their head forcing them to vote in favour of strike action.

My husband is a signaller for network rail so striking.

every time they strike he loses a days pay. It’s soon adding up each month. I feel for those working over Xmas and have lost out on 3x their pay.

Actually that’s bulltshit.

my husband said that if they don’t stoke and go against the grain the rest of his team would never speak to him again. His work life would be made horrific.

Have only read the first page.

First off: there were no agressive posts previous to the "why so agressive". You need to be more resiliant if you think those two answers are agressive.

The strikers have been offered an effective pay cut. They have rejected that offer. The railways are paying out to their shareholders and there's the problem. A privatised company has a duty first to the shareholders.

Which means: nationalise the railways, and that problem won't be as prominent.

Those complaining about not getting a pay rise: are you in a union? why not?

Don't fall for all the crap being spouted about how much train drivers earn. The RMT doesn't represent train drivers. And yy to the point about accessibility and safety. This is the best reason to support the strikes.

As they say: All i want for Christmas are the Means of Production.

Are you saying that if colleagues are striking then he loses pay even if he is not, as he isn't needed those days? I doubt it, as that would be breach of contract and I assume he has contracted hours.

*Actually that’s bulltshit.

my husband said that if they don’t stoke and go against the grain the rest of his team would never speak to him again. His work life would be made horrific*

How would they know? The vote for strike action is done online, its anonymous, colleagues wouldn't know which way someone else voted.

The bullshit is all yours, dear

No the issue is people sit in jobs and accept the poor pay, conditions and the risk to their jobs. Everyone has the right to good pay, conditions.

everyone clapping for the NHS but they’ve supposed to accept an awful pay rise, everyone cheers on the fire brigade I wouldn’t run into a burning building but again they’ve to accept an awful pay rise.

instead of cheering these people on for fighting for a better life or actually their pay rise being the same as inflation we moan our lives are being disrupted for lunch