CAMPAIGNING FOR WELSH RAILWAYS

RMTnews :: october 2006 :: www.rmt.org.uk 6 R MT members at Heathrow Express took solid strike action recently after rejecting a rehashed three-year pay and conditions offer by a 12-to- one margin. From the picket line at Paddington, RMT general secretary Bob Crow attacked to use of inadequately trained managers to run trains during strike action. “Dangerous tactics like this will not settle this dispute but it will put people’s lives at risk,” he said. Bob made it clear to Heathrow Express that the union was available for talks to resolve the dispute, but the referendum result should tell the company exactly where members stand. “The problem remains that Heathrow Express is still expecting our members to pay for a shorter working week with shorter breaks and a squeeze on other conditions. “They have also been angered by the company’s attempt to dress up the non- consolidated lump sum they are offering instead of the back-pay we are entitled to as some sort of concession, and that will not wash,” he said. RMT membership has grown steadily at Heathrow Express throughout the dispute and members have twice rejected the three-year offer on the table by a 12-to-one margin. Further strike action has been suspended after an agreement was reached to hold more talks. I n a submission to the Wales Transport Strategy - Connecting Wales consultation exercise, the union has welcomed the commitment and investment shown by the Wales Assembly Government (WAG) demonstrated by the re-opening of the Vale of Glamorgan Line and the imminent opening of the Western Valley Line. Valley Line services have shown a passenger growth of more than 40 per cent in recent years and 4.5million tonnes of freight was moved by rail in 2003. However, RMT continues to raise concerns about the performance of the privatised passenger rail services in Wales. Arriva Trains Wales (ATW) received £99.7 million in public subsidy in 2005/06 yet punctuality stands at just 81.4 per cent. This figure compares unfavourably with the publicly- owned British Rail where ‘Regional Railways’ achieved punctuality figures in excess of 90 per cent in the early 1990s across the network. RMT supports many of the aspirations set out in the consultation document but believes that the Assembly will struggle to deliver them whilst public transport in Wales remain in private hands. RMT would also hope that the consultation exercise produces a Wales Transport Strategy which encourages more economically sustainable forms of transport while rewarding the workforce with decent pay, terms and conditions, training and skills development. There is also a need to support the rail freight sector and a commitment to a review of fares and ticketing structures to tackle social exclusion. RMT regional organiser Brian Curtis will make these points when he leads a Welsh TUC delegation to meet the Welsh Assembly later this month. CAMPAIGNING FOR WELSH RAILWAYS HEATHROW EXPRESS STRIKE SOLID