SAY NO TO SWT TICKET OFFICE CUTS

RMT helpline 0800 3763706 :: july/august 2008 :: RMTnews 4 T he two largest rail unions RMT and TSSA have joined forces to urge South West Trains passengers to reject plans to cut ticket-office opening times at 114 stations. As SWT began a compulsory consultation over its plans, RMT and TSSA started distributing postcards to commuters with which they can object to Passenger Focus, the watchdog which has the power to challenge the plans. Around 20 MPs have already signed Early Day Motion 1969, tabled by Southampton Test MP Alan Whitehead, against the plans which would leave dozens of stations without ticket-office facilities all weekend, and dozens more with curtailed opening hours. The result will also mean more stations completely unstaffed – often late at night. The planned cuts come despite the fact that passenger numbers on SWT are up by nearly six per cent and it only weeks after SWT’s owners, Stagecoach, announced a massive jump in their rail profits to nearly £60 million on the back of year-on-year ahead of inflation fare increases. “SWT’s plans amount to an attack on the service to passengers and up to 140 jobs, and they undermine safety for everyone,” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said. “Rail workers and passengers alike want to see more staff on stations, not fewer, and I hope that passengers will join us in telling SWT that these cuts are unacceptable,” Bob Crow said. TSSA assistant general secretary Manuel Cortes warned that the cuts would directly hit passengers, making stations unsafe and tickets more expensive. “Unstaffed stations will be less safe for travellers, particularly at the weekends and in the evenings. Tickets will be more expensive because you cannot ask a machine for the cheapest available journey,” he said. The Parliamentary EDM warned that the cuts could not be justified when the stations earmarked had seen a combined increase in passengers of nearly 27 per cent and called on South West Trains immediately to withdraw its plans. SAY NO TO SWT TICKET OFFICE CUTS R MT has welcomed a dramatic U-turn by First Great Western over plans to scrap buffet cars on high-speed trains. The U-turn came as FGW catering staff, train managers and senior conductors voted for industrial action. Members voted by a margin of nearly two-to-one to strike following the company’s failure to guarantee that it would stop removing buffet cars and provide satisfactory assurances over jobs and safe working conditions. But, on the eve of the closure of the ballot, FGW issued a bulletin indicating that a review of its policy “makes a clear recommendation to retain buffet facilities on all our HST services”. “If this U-turn is confirmed it vindicates our members’ campaign and amounts to a huge victory for the service that passengers want and the job security and safety standards our members need,” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said. The union’s executive committee congratulated members at FGW for the principled stand they took and for making it clear, despite enormous pressure and disinformation from the company, that removal of buffet cars was unacceptable. A huge number of passengers backed the union’s campaign and nearly 40 MPs signed Early Day Motion 1723, tabled by Stroud Labour MP David Drew, protesting against the proposals. The EDM warned that the buffet car was an essential service and called on the company to immediately assure passengers that it will retain and improve all its buffet car services. FGW DROPS PLAN TO REMOVE BUFFET CARS UNITY: Battersea and Wandsworth trades council and local MP Martin Linton joined RMT members to halt ticket office closures