ANNUAL LEAVE ARRANGEMENTS IN THE RAIL INDUSTRY

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: june bulletin 3 2020 :: RMTnews 10 feet and knees together and his hands above his head, holding a bar before letting go. The captain told him that if he wanted to slow down, to put his arms out and which is what he attempted to do on the way down and when he got to the bottom his right shoulder was dislocated. The main injuries suffered by your member were a torn rotator cuff and dislocation to the right shoulder. He was taken to the local hospital and surgery was later undertaken in the form of a rotator cuff repair. The other side's insurers refused to negotiate settlement and it was necessary to commence court proceedings. Satisfactory settlement terms were agreed and the member was awarded £35,000. A member was injured when getting a uniform order ready in the store room she shares with IT. There was limited space and no shelving so the member had to twist and lift a package from the top of other boxes, when she felt back pain. There was no weights or descriptions on the boxes. No risk assessment had been carried out and your member had not received any manual handling training. The member had also made previous requests for a store room of her own. As a result of the injury, your member had a slipped disc and sciatica down the left leg and also a shoulder injury. The other side's insurers refused to negotiate settlement and it was necessary to commence court proceedings. Satisfactory settlement terms were agreed and the member was awarded £22,500. A member was injured during a road traffic accident and suffered impact damage to the right knee, which has exacerbated a previous injury. The other side's insurers refused to negotiate settlement and it was necessary to commence court proceedings. Satisfactory settlement terms were agreed and the member was awarded £12,500. A deduction of £389.69 has been made in respect of repayable sick pay and a cheque for £12,110.31 was sent to the member. A member was working aboard an Oil Platform in the North Sea and was assisting with a medical evacuation of one of his colleagues. He and another colleague were transporting him using a device known as an ambu-chair and while they were lifting this person into the helicopter your member sustained a back injury. The case was raised in court in advance of the triennium and settlement has been delayed by the need for specialist medical evidence. Further time was required for the defenders to instruct their own independent evidence. This case has settled at pre-trial meeting and an increased offer of £37,000 was accepted. A member was injured after slipping due to uneven sloped ground and as a result he suffered damage and pain to the Achilles tendon to his right foot. Following correspondence and detailed negotiations with the other side's representatives it was possible to negotiate a satisfactory settlement for your member of over £14,000. A member was injured after stepping on a defective man hole cover, which was not secured down properly and fell down the man hole injuring his right leg up to his hip. The injury resulted in pain, bruising and swelling to his right knee and pain to his right hip and right elbow. The other side's insurers refused to negotiate settlement and it was necessary to commence court proceedings. Satisfactory settlement terms were agreed and £11,000 was awarded. The government has amended current regulations to allow employees to carry over leave they were unable to take for up to two years. However some companies were insisting that booked leave be taken with some companies even allocating leave during specific periods of the year. The union has asked the Rail Industry Coronavirus Joint Forum (RICF) that all signatories abide by one set of principles and sought clarification and agreement on the following:- • Any statutory leave not taken in the current leave period will be carried over and can be taken by staff over the following two years as per Government amendments to current regulations. • Where staff have booked leave to go on a holiday, either abroad or in Britain, they will be entitled to cancel this leave and use it at a later date. All citizens have been instructed to stay at home where possible and all independent and tour operator holidays have been cancelled. It is not right or fair to make staff take the leave and stay at home when they could re-book at a later date when the lock-down is lifted. • Compulsory leave periods – e.g. two weeks must be taken in each 6-month holiday period – will not be enforced during the lock-down period. RMT has also pointed out that many staff are key workers and are needed to keep the industry functioning and services running. I stated leeway was needed, not least because when this awful situation we are in ends, staff will need to take leave for their mental wellbeing having worked as key workers throughout the lock-down and beyond. However the RICF has stated that rail workers are currently unable to take a holiday either in the UK or abroad due to the current government lock down measures, it was also felt that annual leave is required to be taken to support the maintenance of good health and mental wellbeing. In this regard he felt it important that rail workers can still take rostered and other annual leave throughout the year in order to have a break from their work irrespective of whether it is enjoyed at home or elsewhere. Of course, RMT never suggested that employees should not be allowed to take the leave if they wanted to, it was asking that where staff did not wish to do so they be allowed to cancel any booked leave and take it at a later date, albeit within the demands of the industry. ANNUAL LEAVE ARRANGEMENTS IN THE RAIL INDUSTRY Union will challenge all forced leave on members by all means at its disposal