No more Tebays

D ELEGATES stood in a minute’s silence in memory to those lost at Tebay and listened to a detailed description of the events that led to the deaths of the men, employed by Carillion, when a runaway trailer ploughed into their gang. A delegate who knew the men explained that there had been previous incidents of runaway trailers yet they were still in use. He said that the noise from light generators alone ensured that the approaching runaway trailer coming out of the night could not be heard. He said that there were real questions that had not been answered, why wasn’t silent lighting used? Why was planning so bad that work had to be carried out at night? “This was not an accident, it was negligence and those responsible should be put away”, he said. “This could have happened in your area,” he told delegates. Assistant general secretary Mick Cash said it was a clear indication of the problems of privatisation. “There were at least eight different sub- contractors working on the line that night. “Tebay should not have happened and this union is demanding nothing less than a full public inquiry,” he said. He said that lessons needed to be learnt and real action had to be taken. RMT general secretary Bob Crow, who attended the funerals of the men, reported that the union had to fight to secure average earnings for Tebay survivors who were injured and traumatised after the company had tried to only pay basic earnings while they were off sick. Conference backed a motion from Lancaster branch demanding that the union work towards bringing in corporate respon- sibility legislation. It also demanded a full public inquiry into Tebay and the wider problems on the privatised network and that the union continue to campaign for the renationalisation of the railway. Pay and conditions Conference agreed that following the transfer of many infrastructure workers from the private sector to Network Rail, parity in rates of pay and conditions should be introduced. Richard Garde of Wimbledon No1 branch said that it was necessary to take the opportunity now, during the changeover to Network Rail, to eliminate large fluctuations in pay scales “If we don’t the industry will descend into chaos as staff jump around from job to job for more pay and better conditions, causing dangerous levels of confusion,” he said. Danny McNickel of EMC branch said that what was required was an industry-wide standard. Mick Cash agreed and said it was clear that one set of terms and conditions would be good for the industry. “We cannot allow infrastructure workers to become second-class citizens within Network Rail. We need to take the bull by the horns and establish certainty,” he said. Conference agreed to place the matter before this year’s RMT annual general meeting. Hard hats Conference called on the union to negotiate with Network Rail and other infrastructure companies that the wearing of hard hats RMT news – Engineering grades conference No more Tebays No more tiers THE tragic deaths of four infrastructure workers at Tebay earlier this year was a symptom of wider problems in the industry the RMT engineering grades conference in Inverness agreed last month. RMT will fight against the development of a two-tier workforce where some employees receive travel facilities and a good pension while others do not, RMT general secretary Bob Crow told conference. “How can it be that some infras- tructure companies and the Metropolitan police can provide travel facilities, while Network Rail is refusing to even discuss the matter? “If you work on the Irish rail network, you get travel facilities on the British network but if you joined the British rail network after 1996 you get nothing, that is no joke,” he said. Bob also outlined the case for a decent final salary pension for all Network Rail staff. “Shutting down the Railway Pension Scheme to new staff will make the scheme more expensive for existing members and threaten its very existence and the number of members putting into the fund inevitably dwindles,” he said. He said that the collapse of Equitable Life pensions showed how vulnerable money purchase pension schemes were. VOTING: Delegates backed calls for corporate accountability 12 13 should only apply in “hard hat areas”. Gerry McCann of Ayr said the union believed that safety was number-one priority. However, the diktat from Network Rail that hard hats must be worn everywhere at all times was simply unworkable. “This is more about enforcing a uniform than safety,” he said. Danny McNickel said that the introduction of this hat policy was about corporate identity as well as identifying staff, as new starters wore different coloured safety hats. Bill Rawcliffe of York Engineering branch agreed that the move had a whiff of control freakery about it. “Staff can be threatened or disciplined simply for removing a hat,” he said. Lewis Peacock of LUL Signal, Electrical and Track branch warned that the privateers that had taken over maintenance contracts on London Underground were also bringing in a compulsory hat policy. “It has never been made clear what health and safety dangers head protection is supposed to protect us from,” he said. John Kennedy of Harlesden Engineering branch recounted an incident when a colleague was forced to wear a hard hat while working on open track. “While working on some wiring, the hat fell off, caused damage and delayed trains,” he said. Alex Hogg of Edinburgh and Portobello branch warned that the practice could lead to managers claiming that no risk assessment was required simply because hard hats were in use. End PPP on the tube Conference called on the union to continue to campaign to bring London Underground maintenance contracts back in-house and end the disastrous PPP experiment on the Tube. Doug Hammersley of Jubilee branch warned that the private companies Metronet and Tubelines were undermining safety on the network in order to save money. He said that any response to critical safety issues was hampered by the fact the companies will not deviate from their contracts. “For the private sector there is no profit in increasing spending on safety other than what is absolutely necessary,” he said. He said that public money was being poured into these companies that were carrying out risk assessments based on cost. “We have already seen track patrols being reduced from 24 hours to 48 hours, then to 72 hours and we have seen the results of that,” he said. Lewis Peacock said that after one year of the so-called public-private partnership on the Tube staff were already witnessing the next stage – even more fragmentation. “We are seeing the further break-up of the Tube with sub-contractors and now the privateers want to move in on the operational side such as on the East London line,” he said. Pat Collins of Birmingham said that there was a common bond between rail network maintenance staff and underground workers. “We were privatised nearly ten years ago and have seen the decline in standards, we need to share those experiences and help in the battle for renationalisation,” he said. Accommodation Conference agreed that the lack of decent accommodation facilities for transient work groups was appalling. Fort William delegate Steve Wallace said that the private sector was forcing the industry backwards in terms of welfare for workers. “We have workers in miserable conditions with little or no access to toilet or washing facilities,” he said. Ayr branch delegate Gerry McCann said that workers were entitled under law to work in a clean environment. Andy Littlechild of LUL signal and track branch said that it was a question of health and safety. “LUL staff shut down the job until management agreed to install decent portacabins,” he said. Compass and ruler Conference called on the union to enter negotiations with First Engineering to end the “ludicrous” practice of using a compass and ruler to locate signal areas in unfamiliar locations. Ayr delegate Gerry McCann said that forcing staff to undergo compass and ruler tests was outrageous. “It is humiliating to staff that fail despite the fact that they are good at their job,” he said. Pat Collins of Birmingham Engineering warned that the company was introducing the practice to make workers cover wider areas, allowing them to employ less staff. RMT news – Engineering grades conference UNITED: Delegates to the 2004 Engineering Grades conference Bring back the track Council of Executives representative Willie Devlin congratulated conference for the work done during the transfer of maintenance staff to Network Rail over the last year. “Due to the work you have carried out companies like Jarvis and First Engineering have been forced to confirm, in writing, that there would be no compulsory redundancies or erosion of conditions,” he said. He said that the union would continue to campaign to bring all track work back in- house, including upgrades and renewals, in order to prevent disasters like Hatfield and Tebay. As an engineering worker on London Underground, Willie said that the privati- sation of Tube infrastructure had been a disaster and the union would be campaigning against PPP. “We are seeing the same problems that have developed following the privatisation of overground track. “The immoral and corrupt privatisation of Tube privatisation must be reversed. “We need to be listening to this conference to learn the lessons from those who have lived through privatisation in order to win the campaign to bring the Tube back into the public sector,” he said.