2 yıl önce

UK nationwide strike brings rail network to standstill

The 24-hour strike by around 40,000 workers comes a month after the country’s most disruptive rail walkout in three decades brought trains to a halt across the UK at the start of the summer holiday season.

Reuters

There were almost 1 billion train journeys in the UK in the year to March, compared to 1.7 billion in the 12 months before the pandemic, and rail companies are looking to cut costs and staffing.

Around 40,000 British railway workers have staged a walkout, a month after the largest strike in 30 years.

Wednesday's nationwide walkout over pay and conditions brought the rail network to a virtual standstill with only one in five trains running and caused major disruption to rush-hour commuters.

The dispute centers on pay, working conditions and job security as Britain’s railways struggle to adapt to travel and commuting habits changed — perhaps forever — by the coronavirus pandemic.

There were almost 1 billion train journeys in the UK in the year to March, compared to 1.7 billion in the 12 months before the pandemic, and rail companies are looking to cut costs and staffing.

Negotiations have so far ended in deadlock. The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers says employers’ latest pay offer falls short amid soaring inflation — currently at 9.4 percent — and the worst cost of living crisis in decades.

It accuses the Conservative government of preventing train companies from making a better offer. The government says it is not directly involved in the dispute.

London Underground trains and buses ran as normal, but Eurostar reduced the number of trains though the Channel Tunnel as a knock-on effect, despite its staff not joining the walkout.

The government urged union bosses and train operators to resolve the dispute. Services are expected to resume early Thursday.