ISS AGENCY ATTACKS STRIKING TUBE CLEANERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: july/aug 2014 :: RMTnews 4 R MT members protested outside Parliament in July against cleaning company ISS. The contractor sacked at least one tube cleaner and locked out many more workers without pay for refusing to book on for shifts using Biometric Fingerprinting Machines. One agency cleaner was sacked after refusing to use the biometric system at Heathrow Terminal 4 the previous day as part of industrial action voted on by the members. Other workers have been sent home across the network – without pay – as they clocked on for work at other tube stations. This is in spite of a prior agreement with London Underground that members of staff who did not want to use the biometric system to clock on would be able to continue to use the established method. RMT has been involved in a long-running dispute over the use of fingerprinting for booking on which the union believes is a fundamental attack on civil liberties and designed to completely dehumanise the workplace while threatening jobs through automation in the drive for increased profits. Acting RMT general secretary Mick Cash condemned the attack on tube cleaners who are complying with a union instruction based on a wholly legal ballot for action. R MT members at Transport for London took a further 24 hours of joint strike action on July 10, coinciding with widespread public sector industrial action in a dispute over an all-out attack on pay and pensions that would condemn to staff to a life of poverty in retirement. The action is in protest at TFL’s plans to impose their ‘Pay for Performance’ proposals without serious negotiations. The impetus behind management’s proposals is purely and simply cash-led cuts, a situation that will become worse over the coming years as there are further reductions in TFL’s grant and the expectation that further assaults on jobs, pay and pensions are being lined up. RMT acting general secretary Mick Cash said that the current pension proposals were a concerted attack on terms and conditions and would have a major effect on the future of the entire scheme. “TfL should be in no doubt of about our members determination to defend pay and pensions after the rock solid support for the last waves of joint action with our sister TFL unions. “They must withdraw the current plans and talking seriously about pay and pension plans that protect and enhance the living standards of TFL staff members,” he said. P ower Control Room members on London Underground have reached a settlement agreeable to the union after members took two week of strike action in July over attacks on pension and working conditions for staff that supply the power to the entire tube network from their base in Blackfriars. RMT acting general secretary Mick Cash said that the action was sparked by the cavalier attitude of a management which had been provocative and dangerous. “We must congratulate our members for standing firm after critical inspections had been shelved and agreed procedures ripped up. “I am pleased to say that London Underground finally got out of their trench and engaged with us in serious and meaningful negotiations with us at ACAS to a satisfactory conclusion,” he said. ISS AGENCY ATTACKS STRIKING TUBE CLEANERS TRANSPORT FOR LONDON STAFF JOIN STRIKE ACTION TUBE POWER CONTROL VICTORY