Scotland's railways to be paralysed in two weeks in 'biggest' rail strike in modern history

The RMT union will shut down the country's railway network on 21st, 23rd and 25th June, in an ongoing UK-wide dispute with Network Rail -which owns the nation’s rail tracks, stations and signals – over plans to axe hundreds of critical maintenance jobs.

The rail industry has called on RMT to call off the "premature" strikes and continue discussions to avoid unnecessary and disruptive industrial action.

The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) said the strike action will cause "significant disruption" to businesses and passengers, particularly key workers who cannot work from home.

It comes as the train drivers union Aslef is due to meet with ScotRail bosses on Thursday as talks resume in a bid to end a separate dispute over pay which has seen services cut by up to half in an emergency timetable due to staff shortages.

The union says Network Rail is planning to cut at least 2,500 safety critical maintenance jobs as part of a £2 billion reduction in spending, including hundreds north of the Border.

Meanwhile, workers have been subject to pay freezes and changes to their terms and conditions.

Unions have warned there are still 200 existing maintenance vacancies in Scotland which they say is affecting passenger safety in the wake of the Stonehaven rail crash of 2020 which claimed the lives of three people.

Network Rail and key players in crossborder services LNER, Avanti West Coast, Transpennine Express and Cross Country Trains are among the major operators are being hit.

The RMT union in Scotland says that a strike would not just hit cross-border services but also the running of operations across Scotland, including Scotrail and Caledonian Sleeper services.

That is because those involved are safety-critical workers, including signallers employed by Network Rail who are crucial to keeping trains running.

RMT say that despite intense talks they have not been able to secure a pay proposal nor a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies. It had said if the staff voted in favour it would be the biggest rail strike in modern history.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: "Railway workers have been treated appallingly.

"Despite our best efforts in negotiations, the rail industry with the support of the government has failed to take their concerns seriously.

"We have a cost-of-living crisis, and it is unacceptable for railway workers to either lose their jobs or face another year of a pay freeze when inflation is at 11.1% and rising.

"Our union will now embark on a sustained campaign of industrial action which will shut down the railway system.

"Rail companies are making at least £500m a year in profits, whilst fat cat rail bosses have been paid millions during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"This unfairness is fuelling our members anger and their determination to win a fair settlement.

"RMT is open to meaningful negotiations with rail bosses and ministers, but they will need to come up with new proposals to prevent months of disruption on our railways."

The RDG said the industry has had talks with the RMT and wants to work to find a solution that will avoid strikes and achieve a fair deal for passengers, taxpayers and rail staff.   It said reform is necessary to secure a long-term future for the railway, which has received over £16bn since the beginning of the pandemic to keep services running.

This sum – equating to nearly £600 per household - means the industry is taking more than its fair share from other public services.   The RDG said that with passenger numbers only at around 75% of pre pandemic levels, "the government cannot continue to commit to increased levels of funding indefinitely".

It went on: "Industry needs to change both to become more efficient, and to bring it up to date with how people work and travel today so that it can ultimately attract more passengers back. "

Network Rail has said it would not commit to changes that made rail travel unsafe.

It comes two months after investigators found a series of failures contributed to the rail crash near Stonehaven.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch probe found the accident – which claimed three lives – happened when the train hit a landslide in August 2020 after heavy rain in the area.

The drainage system was installed in 2011 and 2012 by Carillion – but it was not in accordance with the design. And investigators found no evidence Network Rail carried out any inspection of the upper parts of the drainage system between when it viewed the completed work in 2013 and the accident.

Rail Delivery Group chairman Steve Montgomery, said: “Today’s announcement is disappointing. We urge the RMT’s leadership to call off needless and damaging strikes and continue to work with us to ensure a fair deal for our people and for the taxpayer while securing the long-term future of the railways.

"No one wins in the event of a strike. Staff lose pay, the industry loses vital revenue making it harder to afford pay increases, and passengers and businesses are disrupted.

“While we will keep as many services running as possible, sadly if this action goes ahead, significant disruption will be inevitable. We therefore urge passengers to plan their journeys carefully and find alternative ways to travel during the strike period where possible.” 

The RDG said the industry will now work together to finalise its timetable for strike days which will be announced shortly. 

Andrew Haines, Network Rail’s chief executive, said: “We continue to meet with our trades unions to discuss their pay concerns and we’re doing everything we can to avoid strike action on the railway.

“We know that the cost of living has increased and we want to give our people a pay rise, but the RMT must recognise we are a public body and any pay increase has to be affordable for taxpayers.

“Travel habits have changed forever and the railway must change as well. We cannot expect to take more than our fair share of public funds, and so we must modernise our industry to put it on a sound financial footing for the future. Failure to modernise will only lead to industry decline and more job losses in the long run.

“There are two weeks until the first strike is planned. We will use this time to keep talking to our unions and, through compromise and common sense on both sides, we hope to find a solution and avoid the damage that strike action would cause all involved.”

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “It is incredibly disappointing the RMT have decided to take action that could drive passengers away from the rail network for good.

“The pandemic has changed travel habits – with 25% fewer ticket sales and the taxpayer stepping in to keep the railways running at a cost of £16 billion, equivalent to £600 per household. We must act now to put the industry on a sustainable footing.

“We are working with industry to reduce disruption caused by strike action, but unions are jumping the gun by announcing this when talks have only just begun.

“We once again want to urge the unions to come to talks with the rail industry so we can work together to build a better, more modern, passenger-focused railway.”