Tube strike: Talks fail to reach deal over 24-hour walkout

7 July 2015

Northern Line tube train — Image caption,
Unions earlier rejected an increased pay offer from London Underground

Talks have failed to avert a 24-hour Tube strike on Wednesday evening.

London Underground (LU) bosses have been meeting delegates from four unions representing 20,000 workers but the unions said no deal had been reached.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA), and Unite members plan to walk out at 18:30 BST.

Aslef drivers will begin strike action from 21:30 BST. No further negotiations are planned, according to RMT.

LU and the unions had been trying to reach a deal on Tuesday over the introduction of the new night Tube service.

Mick Cash, RMT general secretary, said: "Despite strenuous efforts by union negotiators to press London Underground to address the issues of fairness, safety, work-life balance and equality at the heart of this dispute, they have come up with nothing in the talks this afternoon."

He said the "action is on" and "there are no further talks planned at this stage".

Transport for London (TfL) said extra bus and river services would be run on Thursday, but warned that roads and all public transport would be much busier than usual.

Getting about

TfL advice:

Cycle and walk where possible
Extra bicycles will be available to hire from London's cycle hire scheme in central London
The DLR, London Overground, bus network, tram and TfL Rail services will operate as normal however passengers are advised to travel outside of morning and evening peak times on Thursday
First Great Western staff are striking too - there will be no First Great Western service between Paddington and Greenford for 48 hours from 18:00 BST on Wednesday as a result of separate strike action
Chiltern Railways services are not stopping at stations between Marylebone and Great Missenden travelling southbound during morning peak time, and northbound during evening peak times
Chiltern Railways services between Aylesbury and London Marylebone via Amersham are also affected by the lack of LU signallers on Wednesday night and Thursday - please check with the train provider for details
Up to 200 extra buses will operate on key routes
The congestion charge remains in place

On Monday the unions rejected the latest pay deal from LU which it said was an increased but "final" pay offer.

It included a 2% rise this year and £2,000 for drivers on the night Tube.

The service is due to start at weekends from mid-September.

Commuters at a London Underground station

Getty Images

The RMT union described the offer as "divisive and unacceptable"

The TSSA union also rejected the offer and general secretary Manuel Cortes said: "This dispute is not just about pay but about how to run a safe and secure night Tube which serves the passengers as well as rewarding the staff."

'Few extra nights'

LU chief operating officer Steve Griffiths said in a message to staff on Monday that a "full and final" offer had been made in an attempt to conclude five months of talks.

Earlier he said it was never suggested that the offer would be withdrawn if the unions did not respond by Monday and said any fresh talks will be based on the latest deal.

The ins and outs of the dispute

The RMT, TSSA, Unite and Aslef unions say the dispute with London Underground (LU) is about workers' pay and conditions associated with the new night Tube working
Union members have voted 9:1 in favour of strike action. Aslef said 81% of its members responded to the ballot
The unions have rejected a deal including a 2% average pay rise for all Tube employees plus a £2,000 one-off bonus for drivers on the five affected lines - by way of compensating them for night working
The RMT union says the rejected driver bonus would only have affected 1,000 Tube workers out of a work force of 20,000 and the union believed this was a divide-and-rule tactic
The unions say they want Tube workers to be fairly compensated for night working which has been linked to poor health
LU says its pay offer is both "fair and competitive"
LU says it is hiring 137 more train operators to work on the night Tube, which would result in existing workers doing "a few extra nights per year within the existing working week"
LU says no-one was being asked to work more hours than at present
The offer includes a pay increase in 2016-17 of RPI or 1%, whichever is greater, plus a £500 launch bonus to all staff on the night Tube lines plus a £2,000 transition bonus for drivers

Mr Griffiths said: "Many of our staff will not be affected by the new services as we are operating Friday and Saturday night services on five lines. We are also hiring 137 more train operators specifically to work on the night Tube.

"For those who are affected, it will mean a few extra nights per year within the existing working week.

"No-one is being asked to work more hours than they do now. We are not asking staff to work unlimited nights and weekends."

Buses, bikes and boats

LU's latest offer included an average 2% increase on basic pay, RPI inflation or 1% (whichever is greater) in 2016 and 2017, and a £500 non-consolidated "launch bonus" to all staff on night Tube lines or at stations serving those lines.

Transport bosses also offered a £2,000 "transition bonus" for drivers working on the overnight services.

Previously a 0.75% pay increase with an additional payment of £250 for drivers was offered.

TfL said Tube services will stop running at about 17:00 BST on Wednesday with people needing to complete their journeys by this time.

There will be no Tube services at all on Thursday.

Additional buses, Santander Cycles and river services are being provided but TfL advised people to travel outside the peak commuter hours on Thursday if possible.