The union will hold a protest outside the Department for Transport on Wednesday amid claims the Government has put a “blockade” on talks to resolve the dispute.
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Under a revised timetable, the operator has said it plans to run nearly 60% of its normal services from Monday 8 August to Friday 12 August, rather than the 85% it has been running since last month.
First-class carriages will be made available to standard ticket holders to squeeze in more passengers but many routes, including…
Parent rail firm Govia Thameslink (GTR) is in a bitter dispute with the RMT over plans for drivers to operate doors on new trains using CCTV.
The two sides spent three days at the conciliation service Acas.
“With our guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies, no impact on safety and a full timetable in place during any action, we urge the RMT not to call a strike which will cost its members pay for no reason, and to rejoin us around the negotiating table”.
Southern Rail have already confirmed that they will only be running trains to the AMEX Stadium until 17:00, meaning fans who travel on the railway will not even be able to get to the ground, never mind get back.
However, although Southern will guarantee that every train now operated with a conductor will continue to have either a traditional conductor or a second member of on-board staff, the company’s offer still includes a long-stop provision that a train could run with only a driver in “exceptional circumstances”, which are to be set out in detail as part of any agreement.
“Our fight is with the company and the Government who have dragged this franchise into total meltdown”.
‘The RMT’s strike is unnecessary, unacceptable and unjustified’.
But the TSSA said 47 jobs will be lost if the plans go ahead to close 34 offices and reduce hours at 49 others.
Govia Thameslink Railway Passenger Service Director Angie Doll said: “We are sorry that our passengers once again look set to suffer further disruption because of the RMT”.
The union bargained with the firm last Friday and offered to drop the strike if an agreement could be made, but Southern called it a “red herring”.
39 conductors: Average number of Southern conductors calling in sick each day during the dispute, according to the company’s chief executive.
Southern Rail staff have been locked in a dispute for months over whether conductors or drivers should have responsibility for closing the doors on trains.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: “There is absolutely no excuse for the RMT strikes which are created to stop essential improvements of passengers’ journeys”.
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The RMT confirmed on Tuesday that 84% of its members on Virgin Trains East Coast had voted to strike over changes to jobs and conditions, which it claims could threaten up to 200 jobs.
