More than 1,000 Transport for London and London Underground workers will take strike action next Friday, August 19, in a dispute over pay, pensions and jobs. They include workers on the Croydon Trams.
Up the junction: workers on Croydon’s Trams will be on strike next Friday
The workers, members of the Unite union, will go on strike at the same time as their colleagues in other unions employed on London’s Underground and Overground. More than 1,600 Unite members employed by the London United bus company will also stage pay strikes over the same period.
This is all in addition to tomorrow’s planned strikes by ASLEF, the train divers’ union, which will affect services on South Eastern and London Overground, with potential for “knock-on effects” for other services.
Unite says that its members on the trams, in TfL and London Underground “are striking over a lack of a pay rise for 2021, a 3per cent offer for 2022, cuts to their pensions and a lack of guarantees over job security”.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Our members worked through the pandemic, putting themselves and their families at risk to keep London running. Now they are being told they must pay for covid with cuts to their pay and pensions and threats to their jobs.
United action: union boss Sharon Graham
“These attacks to their livelihoods must be taken off the table and a proper pay rise put forward or the strikes will escalate.”
The Tory government is demanding the value of TfL and UNderground workers’ pensions are slashed and their final salary pension scheme is closed down.
Among the Unite members expected to strike are staff employed at Victoria coach station, Dial-a-Ride and river services. TfL’s surface operations, the network management control centre and the compliance, policing, operations and security directorate will also be impacted by the strikes.
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I support the RMT strikes and all those who strike with them. In my view it is about far more than pay. As a disabled passenger, who is now mobility impaired from a stroke ,I want and need the staff on the platforms and ticket offices to help me. What about people with other needs .? Before I became disabled I commuted for years by trains. Safety is a huge issue . There have been several very high profile train accidents .
Considering the minimum wage is about £52-52K for Central London, Tube staff are vastly underpaid given their working conditions (excluding the Elizabeth Line), bus drivers are included too considering the abuse they get from customers. Tram drivers kinda got it easy tbh. Just IMHO.