Strikes are set to ripple through most of January (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
As Rishi Sunak eyes up anti-strike legislation, railway workers and civil servants are once again on the picket lines over pay and working conditions.
Today marks the end of the 48-hour workout staged by members of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), the main railway union.
The walk-out impacted National Rail, which owns and manages the bulk of Britain’s railway network, as well as 14 train operators.
This means that only around 20% of services will operate today and over half will be shut down altogether.
Affected operators include: Chiltern Railways, Cross Country Trains, Greater Anglia, LNER, East Midlands Railway, c2c, Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, South Eastern, South Western Railway, Transpennine Express, Avanti West Coast, West Midlands Trains and GTR (including Gatwick Express).
Passengers are advised to travel only if ‘absolutely necessary’, to check timetables in advance and leave plenty of time to get there.
Timeline of strikes over the next few weeks
– January 7
The RMT rail workers’ walkout continues.
National Highways workers will continue their strike in the East Midlands and eastern England.
The DVSA strike continues in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
– January 8
The DVSA strike continues in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
– January 9
The DVSA strike continues in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
RPA staff to continue their walkout.
– January 10
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union will stage a national strike in primary schools, special schools and early years sites.
The DVSA strike continues in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
RPA staff to continue their walkout.
London bus workers at Abellio to go on strike.
– January 11
Unison members working for five ambulance services in England will stage a fresh walkout.
The GMB union, also representing ambulance staff, has now scheduled further strike action for this date.
EIS, joined by the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association, will stage another national strike in secondary schools and secondary special schools.
RPA staff will continue their walkout.
– January 12
Workers on London’s Elizabeth line will go on strike.
London bus workers at Abellio will also stage industrial action.
RPA staff will continue their walkout.
– January 13
RPA staff to continue their walkout.
– January 16
EIS to stage a national strike for 16 consecutive days until February 2, which will see members in two local authorities strike each day.
London bus workers at Abellio will go on strike.
– January 18
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) members in England will strike.
– January 19
London bus workers at Abellio will go on strike.
RCN members in England will continue their strike.
– January 23
Unison members working for five ambulance services in England will stage another walkout.
– January 25
London bus workers at Abellio will go on strike.
– January 26
London bus workers at Abellio will continue to strike.
Elsewhere, those working for the National Highways, a government-owned company which manages motorways, are striking in the East Midlands and eastern England.
Drivers are asked to plan ahead of any trips today along the 4,500-mile strategic road network as the festive season winds down. Company representatives say they are ‘confident’ the strike will have ‘minimal overall impact’.
Today’s action is the final in a string of National Highways strikes organised by the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), which represents civil servants, among traffic officer service members.
Among other civil servants striking are those from Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).
Driving examiners, call centre staff, driving instructing examining and local driving test managers are joining picket lines in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
Car, motorcycle, lorry, bus, coach, minibus, tractor and specialist vehicle driving tests may all be impacted today, transport officials warn.
The stoppage means some practical tests will likely be cancelled, and some learner drivers won’t know if they have until sometime today.
As the cost-of-living crisis shows little sign of ceasing, labour unrest has seized the UK for months (Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images)
The DVSA will automatically rebook any cancelled driving tests, with new details sent within five to 10 working days.
The UK entered 2023 much the same way it ended the last one – a wave of labour unrest emptying railway tracks, delaying deliveries and putting debates over public sector pay on the lips of politicians.
Union bosses say worker wages lag greatly behind inflation that has sent prices skyrocketing and deepening the cost-of-living crisis.
After months of job action from factory workers, nurses, ambulance crews, defence lawyers, postal staff, reduce collectors and more, public support remains high.
A YouGov poll last month showed 66% supported striking nurses and 28% opposed them, 58% favoured firefighters with 33% against, and 43% backed rail workers with 49 % opposed.
But on Thursday, prime minister Sunak threatened to lay out a law to force ‘minimum service levels’ in key public sectors including the NHS and schools.
The law, which the government hopes to put forward in the coming weeks, would enable bosses in health, education, fire, ambulance, nuclear commissioning and rail to sue trade unions and sack picketing employees.
Rishi Sunak is hoping to legislate a way for employers to sue unions and sack workers (Picture: Getty Images Europe
The Trades Union Congress, a federation of unions, tweeted: ‘When workers democratically vote to strike, they can be forced to work and sacked if they don’t.
‘This is wrong, unworkable, and almost certainly illegal.’
Sunak has claimed the government has invited union leaders to crunch talks on Monday over the ongoing strike action.
‘We incredibly value the important work that our public sector workers do, especially our nurses, and we want to have an honest, grown-up conversation about what is affordable, what is responsible for the country,’ he said.
But Thompsons Solicitors, a social justice law firm, said Sunak’s anti-strike legislation does not comply with international labour laws or the European Convention of Human Rights.
Trade union law head Richard Arthur said: ‘The government is referring to minimum “safety levels” and we anticipate legal challenge around what they are and who defines them.’
‘The legal challenges when they come (and they will) are not something that the government can sidestep saying, “Brexit has set us free”,’ he added.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
From the railways to the motorways.
