How will the May train drivers’ strike affect passengers?
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Train drivers will continue to go on strike during the upcoming summer months, with a new series of "rolling" walk-outs planned for May. The strikes will occur in one region at a time.
Aslef union members are planning to cause major disruptions on the 7th, 8th and 9th of May in 2024. They plan to halt a significant number of trains during these days, including those that would typically transport commuters to their workplaces on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
The objective is to cause disturbance to the services of 14 railway companies in England under the control of the UK government and represented by the Rail Delivery Group (RDG). The implementation of consecutive strikes can create the most significant disturbance with minimal impact on payment.
Furthermore, there will be more cancellations from May 6 to May 11 due to the implementation of six days of overtime bans. On the initial day of the ban, the early May bank holiday will take place. At the endpoint of the ban, Take That will perform in Manchester.
In April, passengers were impacted by a round of strikes carried out nationwide by train drivers. These strikes included a ban on overtime and intermittent walk-outs in specific regions.
In July 2022, Aslef train drivers went on strike due to a disagreement with their employers on pay and working conditions. The union is requesting a pay increase without any conditions attached. However, rail companies, who are directed by the government, argue that such an increase relies on significant changes to working methods to cut public funding.
Throughout the argument, an immense amount of trips were terminated, resulting in a financial loss of billions of pounds for the UK's economy, specifically impacting businesses involved in the hospitality industry.
Every passing moment, UK taxpayers are investing £90 in a dilapidated and fragile railway system, in addition to their regular subsidy. This accumulates to a whopping £2.8 billion in extra public funds annually.
The argument has grown more hostile and there is no indication of making any headway towards resolving it.
Stuck between two parties in a stubborn disagreement is the passenger. According to a quick survey conducted on social media by The Independent, with 2,142 replies, 33% of passengers claim they will lessen their travels for good once the strike has concluded.
These are the important queries and their corresponding responses for the passengers.
What Rail Companies Are Involved?
Aslef has a disagreement with 14 train operating companies (TOCs) that have been hired by the UK government to offer train services. These TOCs consist of:
recently announced that they will be investing over £7.5 million to improve the connectivity of their trains to the internet, specifically the Wi-Fi service. GWR recognized the importance of staying connected while on board and ensuring that their passengers have access to reliable and fast Wi-Fi. This new investment will allow for faster speeds and stronger connections, ultimately improving the overall passenger experience. The upgrade will also provide an enhanced entertainment offering, including access to a wider selection of movies, TV shows, and music for passengers to enjoy during their journey. Overall, GWR's investment in improved Wi-Fi service demonstrates their commitment to enhancing the travel experience for their passengers and staying up to date with the latest technology.
Transport Companies In Southeast England
The train operators GTR, which include Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern, and Thameslink, provide transportation services.
South Western Railway, which encompasses the Island Line operating on Isle of Wight, is what we'll be discussing in this segment.
"Operators Targeting North, Midlands & London Links"
West Midlands Railway (which also includes London Northwestern Railway)
Train Driver Strike: When's The Walkout?
Members of the Aslef union who work as drivers will take part in a strike that will follow a specific schedule:
C2C, Greater Anglia, Great Northern, Thameslink, Southeastern, Southern, Gatwick Express, and South Western Railway all focus on serving commuters in and around London.
The train companies Avanti West Coast, Chiltern, East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, West Midlands Railway, and CrossCountry plan to create as much chaos as possible on important long-distance and local train routes in the Midlands region.
The East Coast main line and folks traveling in the North of England and southern Scotland can take advantage of the services provided by LNER, Northern, and TransPennine Express.
Operator's Predicted Effects?
During the period of industrial action, the Night Riviera sleeper train that goes from London to Penzance and the Gatwick Express that goes from London to the Sussex airport will not be in service.
These might be the expected service schedules for other operators, but it's best for travelers to confirm closer to their planned trips. In case trains are in operation, there's a possibility that their regular hours will be shortened.
The occurrence of disturbance could be possible on the days preceding and succeeding strike days. As per the statement made by TransPennine Express, it is advisable to plan your railway journeys meticulously because the services could be initiated later or conclude earlier than routine.
Greater Anglia has services available that travel between London Liverpool Street and various locations including Stansted airport, Southend, Colchester, Ipswich, and Norwich.
The transportation company Southern plans to operate a shuttle system that will connect London Victoria to the Gatwick airport.
Thameslink is going to provide a shuttle train service between the stations of London St Pancras and Luton, which includes both the town and the airport.
Great Northern is introducing a shuttle transport option for commuters travelling from London King's Cross station to Cambridge.
The South Western Railway plans to operate trains connecting London Waterloo to Woking and Guildford, along with potential additional local services.
Southeastern advises passengers to avoid travelling, however, they plan to operate services on certain routes including the high-speed line between London St Pancras and Ashford, as well as the routes between Charing Cross and Orpington, and London Bridge and Dartford.
C2C is going to cease operations across all its service offerings.
It is probable that all train services operated by five different train companies, namely Avanti West Coast, Chiltern, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Railway, and CrossCountry, will be cancelled.
GWR is not going to operate any trains for long distances, but they will create connections between Reading and Oxford and Basingstoke. Also, they will create a link between Bristol and Cardiff, alongside branch routes in Devon and Cornwall. According to the company, several sections of the GWR network will not have any services, and the trains that will run will only have limited operations during the day.
Northern and TransPennine Express have decided to stop all their services while LNER will only operate a few essential routes from 7am-7pm. LNER will provide one train almost every hour on its Edinburgh to London line with a few extra trains operating on the southern part of the network.
"Is The Overtime Ban Still In Effect?"
Some members are declining to work their scheduled days off starting from Monday 6 until Saturday 11 May, which includes all those days. Various rail firms heavily rely on drivers' extra work time, which could lead to hundreds or even thousands of train cancellations.
During the overtime ban period, there will be a limited schedule on all days for Greater Anglia, Avanti West Coast, and West Midlands Railway.
According to GWR, the limitation of overtime will result in unexpected changes and terminated journeys, particularly during weekends or late night hours.
According to Southeastern, they anticipate providing their usual service throughout the designated period, except for May 7th, when a strike will take place on their network.
What Rail Companies Are Not Involved?
A few train service providers that receive funding from the government will continue to operate as usual. These include ScotRail, Transport for Wales, Transport for London (including the Elizabeth line), and Merseyrail.
Public transport companies with unrestricted access to the East Coast main line, such as Grand Central, Hull Trains, and Lumo, will be operating as usual during the industrial action. However, due to the strike-hit companies like LNER, TransPennine Express, CrossCountry, and Northern, their services may be more crowded than usual as they cover similar routes.
What's At Risk In This Conflict?
Train drivers are asking for an increase in their pay due to the increased cost of living since the last time they received a pay raise. Aslef has stated that a few of their members have not had their salaries increased in the past five years.
However, the authorities demand that a slight raise in pay can only be approved if there are significant adjustments to current working conditions that have been in place for a long time. These changes aim to decrease expenses and lower the extensive monetary support given to the railway by taxpayers.
Travel habits have shifted due to the pandemic, resulting in a decrease in ticket sales by approximately 20% compared to pre-Covid times. Any salary increase for train drivers will eventually be paid for by taxpayers, therefore both the Department for Transport and the Treasury must approve the agreement.
Government officials think that the working arrangements of train drivers are contributing to the issue. In order to save money, the drivers will need to agree to changes in their work practices, including acknowledging Sunday as a regular workday across the board.
The Rail Delivery Group gave a proposal on 27th April 2023, which included a pay raise of 4+4 per cent spanning two years for the 2022 and 2023 pay awards. However, this was on the condition that there would be several modifications made to their terms and conditions. These modifications would address various concerns such as training for drivers, working on Sundays, sick pay and incorporating new technological advancements.
The union has deemed this as totally not acceptable. The train operators are willing to discuss adjustments, but only once they receive a reasonable pay offer, without any conditions added, to go on top of their existing pay.
They are confident that they will receive the funds necessary to fulfill their requests, just as they have done previously. Aslef has a history of negotiating alterations to working conditions for a modest salary increase, and they do not plan on altering this practice.
At the same time, trust levels of travelers are still decreasing. It is not possible for any railway passenger to plan trips more than 14 days in advance due to the minimum notice required by the union in case of industrial action.
What Employers And Government Say?
Someone who speaks on behalf of the Rail Delivery Group said that the strike by Aslef is not needed and will unfortunately cause inconvenience to customers and businesses. It will also harm the railway, which is already struggling while taxpayers are providing an additional £54 million per week to keep things going.
We are still aiming to reach a just and reasonable deal with the Aslef leaders that will fairly compensate our workers, offer our clients more dependable service, and ensure that the railway is not receiving an excessive amount from taxpayers.
Someone from the Department of Transport commented that the leaders of Aslef are repeating their call for strike action over and over again. They are the only rail union that keeps striking, and they're also the only union that has not given their members a fair pay offer in over a year. It seems like they're not willing to compromise.
The transportation secretary and rail minister made efforts to make this payment proposal possible. This proposal would increase the salaries of train drivers to an average of £65,000 which is nearly double the typical pay in the United Kingdom.
The heads of Aslef ought to follow the example of the rest of the railway unions by presenting this proposal to their members and cease their disrespectful actions towards passengers.
Union Stance: What's Their Say?
Mick Whelan, the head of Aslef, stated that it has been one calendar year since they had a meeting with train corporations and refused their laughable proposal. Additionally, the companies admitted their offer was intended to be denied in private discussions.
He mentioned that the most recent discussions occurred on the 26th of April in the year 2024.
Train operators have consistently voted to take action in order to receive a salary increase. Due to this, the statement made by Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, claiming that the offer should have been presented to members, is deceitful. Train drivers would not engage in strike activities if the offer was deemed reasonable, which it is not. The offer, which has now been in existence for a year, is no longer valid and cannot be implemented.
The payment agreements for these organizations expired in 2019. The individuals who operate the trains for these transportation companies have not received a pay raise for a period of five years, which is unacceptable. Management and the government are under the incorrect assumption that we will surrender and withdraw, but we will not let that happen. In the words of the late Tom Petty, we will stand firm and not be intimidated.
When Will The Strikes End?
It is believed that changing the government is necessary to improve the situation. Rishi Sunak, the current Prime Minister, has shown a great lack of respect for the railway system in Britain – something that has not been seen since Margaret Thatcher's tenure. This was made evident when he recently declared a 50% reduction in Air Passenger Duty for domestic flights, which may sway people to choose air travel over trains. This announcement was made just before the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.
Breaking years of cross-party consensus, the leader of the government discontinued the proposal for HS2 above Birmingham and called for a rapid sale of safeguarded land to prevent the initiative from being reintroduced. Furthermore, for 18 months, the Chancellor has allowed periodic protests by train operators to persist without expressing any interest in reaching a resolution.
Labour Party's Stance?
Louise Haigh, the Shadow Secretary for Transport from the Labour party, expressed her disbelief that the transport secretary hasn't prioritized talks with the unions to find a solution to the issue since Christmas of 2019.
The Labour party aims to pursue a unique strategy compared to the Conservatives. They aim to collaborate with both parties to ensure that passengers and workers benefit from the deal. It is possible that if the transport secretary adopted this approach, we would not be experiencing rail strikes.
What Is The Cost Of All The Disruption?
Based on information from the RDG, the rail sector suffered a loss of approximately £775m due to strikes that occurred between June 2022 and mid-January 2024. This value does not cover the consequences of the more recent strikes and bans on overtime, which likely resulted in additional losses of roughly £200m.
According to UKHospitality, the hospitality sector has suffered a massive loss of revenue which could amount to almost £5 billion. Kate Nicholls, CEO of the organisation, expressed her concern about the continuous strike action, as it disrupts business operations and reduces the number of people who can travel to their workplace. Moreover, she believes that the rail network's reputation is negatively affected, leading to a decrease in people's trust in it.
Moreover, there is an unpredictable decrease in earnings caused by passengers who have modified their way of living or discovered other transportation options. Companies have also halted their travels and are relying on digital platforms to communicate. Furthermore, individuals are cutting down on their trips due to the absence of assurance.
New Law Sets Minimum Service Levels - What's It All About?
New laws have been introduced which give the transport secretary the power to set minimum levels of service on strike days. These levels must be at least 40% of the regular service. The government has said that this new legislation, called the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023, is intended to guarantee that essential services are still available to the public even during times of strike action.
None of the train companies plan to enforce the recent legislation upon the union of train drivers. One of them, LNER, proposed the idea earlier in the year and engaged in discussions with the union. In response, Aslef declared a five-day strike, exclusive to LNER. Subsequently, LNER informed the union that it wouldn't mandate drivers to work according to the new law, leading to the cancellation of the strike.
The Transport Select Committee cautioned about unforeseen outcomes of the new law earlier on. The leader of the Conservatives, Iain Stewart, stated that there is a chance that Minimum Service Levels could deteriorate the connection between workers and employers. Consequently, this could make services less dependable.
The regulations that establish the basic level of service are not valid for the restrictions that unions impose on working on days off without a contract. As a result, it would not be advantageous to enforce this legislation during a ban on overtime.
