WINNING AT SERCO BIKES

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: may 2013 :: RMTnews 4 T he TUC disputes committee has found in favour of RMT in a dispute with another union concerning the organisation of workers at the Serco London Cycle Hire Scheme. RMT has been organising workers at the company since late 2010 and has been seeking recognition. However the Community union signed a single union deal with the company earlier this year preventing RMT members at the company being represented by their union. The TUC found that Community had breached principles two and three of the TUC disputes, principles and procedures. The committee ruled that Community should approach the company to amend the existing recognition agreement to allow RMT to be recognised. Shortly after the company began operations Serco workers and RMT activists Mick Crossey, Craig Diggens and others successfully campaigned to organise the workers. Serco worker Zak Dahou was victimised and eventually sacked but RMT is taking his case to tribunal for dismissal for trade union activities. After building a significant membership RMT made a legal claim for recognition with Serco last year but after receiving the claim Serco said that it had signed a deal with Community. Serco workers did not know about the deal and they were only informed by the management after it was signed. Community effectively did a recognition deal directly with the bosses without talking to the workers about what they wanted. As a result the TUC censured Community and instructed it to work with RMT towards joint recognition. The complaint process took the best part of a year and all through this period RMT members were being pressured and coerced by the company to join Community. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that the workers had shown courage and solidarity during the campaign. “The easy route for them would have been to buckle under, leave RMT and join the union chosen by the bosses. “Instead they stood together and fought for their rights and RMT membership at the company has actually grown. “This TUC judgement means they have now won a principled victory in their struggle for a strong RMT voice at work,” he said. RMT is balloting members on Northern Rail for strike action over the casualisation of core rail work in a bid by the company to undermine staff job security, pay and working conditions. Northern Rail management is claiming that it is only “trialling” the use of casual staff but it has escalated the use of agency workers into core areas opening up the opportunity to hire and fire at will. RMT is in no doubt that the company policy is to roll out the use of casual staff into all possible areas of operations, effectively delivering skilled rail jobs on the “lump”, impacting on all permanent staff in the name of “flexibility” and profit. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that instead to sitting down with the union to address the issues at the heart of the dispute Northern Rail had resorted to a campaign of smears, lies and personal attacks in an attempt to influence the outcome of a trade union ballot. “There is evidence of a deliberate and cynical drive to use casual, agency staff to undermine job security, pay and working conditions and our members are furious that not only has the company refused to stop this practice but they are driving it forwards. “Casualisation is now the policy of Northern as they seek to deliver core rail jobs on the “lump” and if it isn’t stopped now there is no question they will seek to roll it out across all grades and that is why all members are being balloted. “RMT’s demand is clear, an immediate end to Northern Rail casualising the workforce,” he said. NORTHERN RAIL STRIKE BALLOT OVER CASUALISATION WINNING AT SERCO BIKES