Planned strike action across the following month (Picture: Metro)
Rail workers and driving examiners are kicking off what could become the worst strike action in a generation with the first in a wave of walkouts.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) are pressing ahead with two 48-hour strikes at Network Rail – and 14 train companies – from Tuesday and Friday.
Driving examiners and Rural Payments Agency workers also begin a series of strikes by civil servants across England, Scotland and Wales on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, talks to avert the nursing strike have failed after the union leader behind the action accused Health Secretary Steve Barclay of ‘belligerence’ and refusing to discuss pay.
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) general secretary Pat Cullen said nurses were ‘not getting an extra penny’ despite their talks on Monday.
Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland now seem set to begin their first day of strike action on Thursday, with a second date set for next Tuesday.
Cabinet minister Oliver Dowden warned the Government ‘cannot eliminate’ the risks of a wave of strike action throughout the month after chairing an emergency Cobra meeting on Monday.
The government has said the cost of meeting an inflation-level 11% pay rise for public sector workers is an ‘unaffordable’ £28 billion.
Mr Dowden added that ministers will be ‘straining every sinew’ to minimise the disruption, with paramedics, postal workers and border officials among those scheduled to walk out.
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Health minister Will Quince admitted that taxis could be used to transport patients during ambulance strikes on December 21 and 28.
He told MPs it is ‘likely’ that category one and two calls ‘where there is an immediate threat to life will be responded to’.
But he added: ‘We are looking at ways in which we can provide additional support for category three and category four, including things such as block-booking taxis and support through community healthcare, local authority fall services and community support.’
On the rails, trains will run from 7.30am to 6.30pm on this week’s strike days, although many parts of the country will have no services, including most of Scotland and Wales.
How is each train operator affected by the latest rail strikes?
Britain’s train operators have released plans for how their services will be altered during the next rail strikes on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Half of all lines will be affected during action.
Trains will only operate between 7.30am and 6.30pm.
Here is a breakdown of each operator’s plan for strike days:
– Avanti West Coast
There will be one train per hour in both directions between London Euston and each of Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Preston.
A limited service will operate to Glasgow.
Several areas will not be served, such as Blackpool, Edinburgh, North Wales and Shrewsbury.
– c2c
On Tuesday and Wednesday, there will be two trains per hour in each direction between London Fenchurch Street and Pitsea via Rainham, and Shoeburyness via Laindon.
No trains will run to or from Ockendon or Chafford Hundred.
– Caledonian Sleeper
All departures on Tuesday and Wednesday night are cancelled.
– Chiltern Railways
No trains will run north of Banbury or to/from Oxford station.
There will be one train per hour in both directions between London Marylebone and each of Aylesbury via High Wycombe; Banbury; and Oxford Parkway.
The same frequency will be in place between Aylesbury Vale Parkway and Amersham.
– CrossCountry
A very limited service is planned.
No direct services will run to and from Birmingham New Street and these locations: Penzance via Bristol Temple Meads and Plymouth; Cardiff Central; Stansted Airport via Peterborough and Cambridge; and Nottingham.
– East Midlands Railway
Just one train per hour will run in each direction between London St Pancras and each of Corby, Nottingham and Sheffield.
There will be the same frequency there will be one train per hour between Derby and both Matlock and Nottingham; between Sheffield and Nottingham; and between Leicester and Nottingham.
All other routes will be closed.
– Gatwick Express
Services will be suspended. Passengers travelling to or from Gatwick Airport can use Southern and Thameslink trains.
– Grand Central
Just three trains in each direction will run between London King’s Cross and Northallerton, and two between London King’s Cross and Wakefield Kirkgate.
– Great Northern
There will be very few trains, with no services east of Ely to King’s Lynn.
– Great Western Railway
Only a very limited service will run, such as between London Paddington and Bristol, Cardiff, Oxford and Plymouth.
– Greater Anglia
On strike days, the company will not run any trains on its regional and branch lines.
Only a very limited service will operate on some routes to and from London Liverpool Street.
– Heathrow Express
A full service will operate, but only between 7.30am and 6.17pm.
– Hull Trains
Only four trains will run between Doncaster and London King’s Cross.
– London North Eastern Railway
A limited timetable will be in operation, with the London King’s Cross-Edinburgh route having just eight trains in each direction.
– London Northwestern Railway
A limited service will connect Birmingham New Street with Crewe, London Euston and Wolverhampton.
Other routes will be closed.
– Lumo
A reduced timetable will be in place with just two trains each way between London King’s Cross and Edinburgh.
– Merseyrail
A limited service will operate.
No trains will run between Chester and Rock Ferry, Ellesmere Port and Rock Ferry, or Liverpool Central and Hunts Cross.
– Northern
Passengers are urged ‘do not travel’ as only a small number of routes will have trains.
Routes that will be open include Liverpool to Manchester; York to Leeds; and Leeds to Sheffield.
– ScotRail
Trains will only run across the Central Belt, Fife and the Borders.
– South Western Railway
A ‘severely limited service’ will run, and only between London Waterloo and Basingstoke, Southampton, Windsor and Woking.
– Southeastern
The vast majority of the network in Kent and East Sussex will be closed.
Only 44 out of 180 stations will be open.
The high-speed route to Ashford International will be open.
– Southern
Much of the network will be shut down.
Services which will run include those on the Brighton Mainline to London Bridge and London Victoria.
– Stansted Express
Two trains per hour will run between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport.
– Thameslink
There will be far fewer trains than normal.
Services will be split north and south, with nothing running between London St Pancras and London Bridge.
– TransPennine Express
Only a reduced timetable will operate on these routes: Between York and Manchester Piccadilly; between Cleethorpes and Sheffield; and between Preston and Manchester Airport.
– Transport for Wales
Most lines will be closed.
An hourly service will run between Cardiff and Newport, with limited trains elsewhere.
– West Midlands Railway
A limited service will operate only between Lichfield Trent Valley and Redditch/Bromsgrove via Birmingham New Street.
But with further walkouts planned, Network Rail has warned there will be significantly reduced services, with trains more crowded and likely to start later and finisher earlier until January 8.
Asked if there is a glimmer of hope in the negotiations, Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines told BBC Breakfast: ‘It’s hard to see that today. I’ve learned, you know, through a long career, that sometimes the light is just around the corner.
‘But where I stand today, I’d have to say that with the level of disruption the RMT are imposing, the way forward isn’t obvious.’
People look at signs giving information about industrial action at Victoria Station in Manchester (Picture: EPA)
But Transport Secretary Mark Harper said ‘almost 40%’ of RMT members at Network Rail voted in favour of an offer to resolve the dispute despite ‘a very clear instruction from their union leadership’.
He told GB News: ‘I think the tide is turning on people seeing that the offers we have made are reasonable, taking into account both the travelling public but also the interest of taxpayers.’
The RMT said 63.6% voted to reject Network Rail’s offer on an 83% turnout.
Driving examiners and Rural Payments Agency workers begin a series of strikes by civil servants across England, Scotland and Wales on Tuesday.
The members of the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) will be followed by those working for the National Highways, the Border Force and a number of offices in the Department for Work and Pensions in the coming weeks.
Around 100,000 PCS members working in 214 government departments and other bodies have voted for strike action over pay, pensions, jobs and redundancy terms.
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: ‘This is the start of the most sustained strike action by civil servants for a generation.
‘They have been offered just a 2% pay rise at a time when inflation is running at over 10%.
‘They are determined, they are strong and they been left with no other way of expressing their concerns about the cost-of-living crisis than to take strike action.’
Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) general secretary Mark Serwotka (Picture: PA)
Around 1,600 PCS members working for the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) will be joined on strike by almost 100 workers at the Rural Payments Agency (RPA).
The month-long rolling strike programme by DVSA workers runs from Tuesday to December 18 in Scotland and northern England before spreading to north-west England, Yorkshire, Humberside and North Wales between December 19-24, the West Midlands, eastern England and the East Midlands between December 28-31 and January 3, culminating in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West between January 4-11.
RPA workers in Workington, Caernarfon and Newcastle are taking action from Tuesday to December 16, and again between December 19-23, January 3-6 and 9-13.
Industrial action expected across the UK: strike dates from now until February
The first of two 48-hour strikes at Network Rail and 14 train companies are to begin on Tuesday (Dec 13) after members of the Rail Maritime and Transport union (RMT) rejected a pay offer.
Services ranging from postal deliveries to health services are to be hit by strikes from now going into February.
Here are some of the strikes planned:
– December 13
Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members on Network Rail and 14 train operators to begin a 48-hour strike.
Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) members at Avanti West Coast will also begin 48-hour strike.
Civil servants in the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union to start a month-long strike, with workers in different agencies and departments walking out on different days.
The first day includes DVSA driving examiners, whose strike will start in Scotland and Northern Ireland, and staff in the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) customer service centre.
Unison workers at the Environment Agency are holding an indefinite work to rule protest.
– December 14
RMT and TSSA train strikes to continue, affecting services across the UK.
Royal Mail workers will walk out on another national strike.
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
Unison workers at the Environment Agency refuse to provide ‘on call’ cover for unexpected incidents.
– December 15
Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will go on strike.
Bus workers for Abellio in London to go on strike for 48 hours.
Royal Mail workers to strike again.
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– December 16
RMT rail workers to stage another 48-hour national strike.
The union will also see members working as security guards on Eurostar staging a 24-hour strike.
TSSA members who work for Avanti West Coast to stage another 48-hour walkout.
Ground handlers employed by private contractor Menzies at Heathrow Airport, who are members of Unite, will walk out from 4am for 72 hours.
Bus workers with Abellio in London will continue their strike.
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
PCS road strikes to begin with National Highways employees walking out in the North West, North East and Yorkshire.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
Unison workers at the Environment Agency refuse to provide ‘on call’ cover for unexpected incidents.
– December 17
TSSA members who work for c2c to walk out.
Rail workers with the same union at Avanti West Coast will continue their strike.
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
National Highways workers continue their walkout in the North West, North East and Yorkshire.
The RMT rail workers’ walkout continues.
Unite ground handlers at Heathrow continue their strike.
– December 18
RMT members working as security guards on Eurostar to stage another walkout.
Unite ground handlers at Heathrow continue their strike.
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
– December 19
Staff working at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) start strike action. More than 200 PCS members in three DWP offices in Liverpool and one in Doncaster will walk out on dates from December 19 to 31 – although it is unclear which dates.
Unite members working for Highlands and Islands Airports will strike, affecting 11 small hubs in Scotland.
DVSA driving examiners to strike in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
RPA staff resume their walkout.
– December 20
RCN members will stage another nurses’ strike.
The DVSA strike continues in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
Unison workers at the Environment Agency refuse to provide ‘on call’ cover for unexpected incidents.
– December 21
Ambulance workers and other NHS staff will stage a strike in England co-ordinated by the GMB, Unison and Unite. Scottish members of Unison and Unite reached an agreement and called off their action.
The DVSA strike continues in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– December 22
Railway cleaners across the country with the RMT union to launch a strike.
National Highways workers begin a walkout in London and the South East.
Unite members working for Highlands and Islands Airports will stage another strike.
RMT Eurostar security staff to stage another walkout.
The DVSA strike continues in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
Unison workers at the Environment Agency refuse to provide ‘on call’ cover for unexpected incidents.
– December 23
Royal Mail workers will walk out in another day of national strike action.
The RMT railway cleaners’ national strike continues.
RMT Eurostar security staff to stage another walkout.
The National Highways workers’ strike continues in London and the South East.
The DVSA strike continues in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
PCS members in Border Force start a wave of strikes, including December 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30 and 31.
– December 24
RMT railway workers will stage another strike from 6pm on Christmas Eve.
Royal Mail workers to continue national strike action.
The DVSA strike continues in the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and North Wales.
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer attend incidents.
– December 25
The RMT rail strike will continue, although no train services run on Christmas Day.
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer to attend incidents.
– December 26
The RMT rail strike will continue, meaning limited Boxing Day services are likely to be cancelled.
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer to attend incidents until 9am.
– December 27
The RMT rail strike continues until 6am.
– December 28
NHS staff in the GMB union will stage another strike.
The DVSA driving examiners’ strikes will start in the West Midlands, the Eastern region and the East Midlands
– December 29
The DVSA strike continues in the West Midlands, Eastern region and East Midlands.
– December 30
Road strikes by National Highways’ employees will begin in the West Midlands and South West.
The DVSA strike continues in the West Midlands, Eastern region and East Midlands.
– December 31
RMT railway cleaners will stage another strike.
Road strikes by National Highways employees will begin in the West Midlands and South West.
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer to attend incidents.
– January 1
National Highways workers to stage two-day action in all areas of the country.
The DVSA strike continues in the West Midlands, Eastern region and East Midlands.
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer to attend incidents.
– January 2
Unison staff at Environment Agency refuse to volunteer attend incidents until 9am.
– January 3
RPA staff will resume their walkout.
– January 4
The DVSA driving examiners’ strike starts in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West.
The RMT rail workers’ strike continues.
UK-wide National Highways strike continues.
RPA staff will continue their walkout.
– January 5
The DVSA strike continues in London, South East, South Wales and South West.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– January 6
RMT rail workers will stage another 48-hour strike.
National Highways workers to stage a two-day action in the East Midlands and eastern England.
The DVSA strike continues in London, South East, South Wales and South West.
RPA staff to continue their walkout.
– 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, South East, South Wales and South West.
– January 8
The DVSA strike continues in London, South East, South Wales and South West.
– January 9
The DVSA strike continues in London, South East, South Wales and South West.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– January 10
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) teachers’ union will stage a national strike in primary schools, special schools and early years sites.
The DVSA strike continues in London, South East, South Wales and South West.
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– January 11
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
RPA staff continue their walkout.
– January 13
RPA staff 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.
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A month rail disruption will begin on Tuesday when workers walk out for their first of a wave of 48-hour strikes.
