Network Rail industrial action

thebennyboy · 19 May 2015 at 16:30

So it seems there is quite likely to be some significant disruption to rail travel on Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th. This is affecting all of the UK and is apparently a strike by Network Rail workers.

Pretty much all operators seem to be affected. With the cost of rail travel increasing every year, where is that extra money going? Thankfully i don't rely on rail travel so it doesn't affect me, but i can image it's going to cause a lot of issues for many people. Is anyone here going to be affected by this next week?

Members of the RMT Union that work for track and infrastructure operator Network Rail have announced that they are planning to take industrial action on Bank Holiday Monday 25 May and Tuesday 26 May. However, further talks between Network Rail and the Trades Unions are planned for this week, which may still lead to resolution of the dispute.

Should the industrial action go ahead there is likely to be severe disruption to rail services on Monday 25 and Tuesday 26 May, although this is likely to vary considerably by route, so you are strongly advised to check with the relevant train company before travelling. More information will also be made available on this page of the National Rail Enquiries website.

Source: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/today.aspx

plasmahal · 19 May 2015 at 16:45

If you have a Season Ticket you will be entitled to compensation. As these arrangements vary by train company, please check with your train company on the compensation you will be entitled to.

I bet that won't compensate the potential loss of earnings many of us who have to use trains will get.

Raumarik · 19 May 2015 at 16:50

It's amazing how some unions seem to go out on strike so much faster than others..

Grandmaster Fap! · 19 May 2015 at 16:57

This could cause madness in Liverpool as the Cunard 'Three queens' come to the mersey over the weekend and they are all together on monday i believe. Me and the missus have a flat on the wirral so we will watch the carnage in comfort

Danthus · 19 May 2015 at 17:21

I support their right to strike, I object to the disruption it causes to people who no say in the strike action.

dl8860 · 19 May 2015 at 17:25

OldCoals said:
I support their right to strike, I object to the disruption it causes to people who no say in the strike action.

so what do you really think?

Danthus · 19 May 2015 at 17:27

dl8860 said:
so what do you really think?

An dispute between employer and employee should not cause problems for the public.

Pawnless Endgame · 19 May 2015 at 17:29

thebennyboy said:
Pretty much all operators seem to be affected. With the cost of rail travel increasing every year, where is that extra money going? Thankfully i don't rely on rail travel so it doesn't affect me, but i can image it's going to cause a lot of issues for many people. Is anyone here going to be affected by this next week.

I'm affected, and my local station was closed during May Day weekend too. That means I'm grounded for both bank holiday weekends. It gets my goat because I'm visually impaired to an extent that I'm not road legal, so I don't get the choice to drive. I'm sure that most of the Network Rail staff do have that choice.

Glaucus · 19 May 2015 at 17:29

thebennyboy said:
, where is that extra money going?

There isn't really any extra money, the government has decided those who use trains should pay for them, thus government spending has been decreasing, while fares have been increasing to compensate.
It's gone from roughly 50/50 to 68/32 fares/government funding.

As I said in speakers corner, rmt are to quick to strike as are most unions. They could easily do other steps first. The industry relies in a flexible workforce with lots of overtime, they could ask members to not do overtime to start with and then work up towards a strike.

Dis86 · 19 May 2015 at 17:30

What it doesn't address is why the railways in this country are so insanely expensive to run!

Glaucus · 19 May 2015 at 17:32

Dis86 said:
What it doesn't address is why the railways in this country are so insanely expensive to run!

Ex public sector with heavy union presence, it is so inefficient it's insane.
The other and bigger issue, is it's old, it was built before most other countries did, it's far more costly to upgrade than build new. Then as soon as new lines like hs2 are announced it's years if legal action that hikes the price.
Hs2 isn't just about cutting times. A lot of routes are at or near capacity and we simply need more lines to increase capacity.

Dis86 · 19 May 2015 at 17:33

Glaucus said:
Ex public sector with heavy union presence, it is so inefficient it's insane.

fancy that...unions again eh. who'd have thought it?

£15 · 19 May 2015 at 17:38

Glaucus said:
There isn't really any extra money, the government has decided those who use trains should pay for them, thus government spending has been decreasing, while fares have been increasing to compensate.
It's gone from roughly 50/50 to 68/32 fares/government funding.

As I said in speakers corner, rmt are to quick to strike as are most unions. They could easily do other steps first. The industry relies in a flexible workforce with lots of overtime, they could ask members to not do overtime to start with and then work up towards a strike.

Er, they do. :rolleyes:

I know from my time as a civil servant in a union it wasn't a quick and easy step to take. There were months and months of meetings, negotiations, industrial action short of a strike, ballots and as a very last resort strike action. The vast majority of members wanted to avoid strike action, despite what the media, government and pub-experts would have one believe. Just because the public aren't privy to some of the other stuff before hand, doesn't mean strikes were the only option taken.

scorza · 19 May 2015 at 17:41

Potential heavy disruption to the rail network on a bank holiday Monday - how will we know if it's happened?

Glaucus · 19 May 2015 at 17:43

BadMojo said:
Er, they do.

.

No they don't. There are other things they could ballot for, but they haven't they went straight for strike action. Yes it's taken months of negotiations, but they haven't implemented anything short of strike.

Moley · 19 May 2015 at 17:43

scorza said:
Potential heavy disruption to the rail network on a bank holiday Monday - how will we know if it's happened?

It starts at 5pm on the bank holiday and carries through to 5pm the following day. People like myself who commute into London on the train are basically being forced to either work from home or take a days holiday.

Glaucus · 19 May 2015 at 17:45

scorza said:
Potential heavy disruption to the rail network on a bank holiday Monday - how will we know if it's happened?

There's heavy disruption on bank holidays anyway, due to engineering works. It's actually 5pm Monday to 5pm Tuesday. And no overtime/callouts from 00:01 Monday to 23:59 Tuesday.

Tefal · 19 May 2015 at 19:56

Halfmad said:
It's amazing how some unions seem to go out on strike so much faster than others..

generally its service unions that strike more than production ones.

because they know that everything goes back to normal after the strike. if production workers strike they know it can cost the company a huge amount of work/put their jobs at risk.

Dolph · 19 May 2015 at 20:00

Just remember, every unecessary penny into a union members pocket is money not being spent on the customer.

deuse · 19 May 2015 at 20:12

Dolph said:
Just remember, every unecessary penny into a share holders pocket is money not being spent on the customer.

Put that right.

I don't think we tax payers that don't use the rubbish, dirty, never can sit down, train company. Should give them our money.