A new round of railway strikes is set to disrupt national networks during the month of July, after the RMT union announced that 20,000 workers would strike for three days.
The announcement dashes any hopes of an imminent resolution of a bitter labor dispute that has caused frequent rail cuts across the country through 2023.
The RMT said that the train operators had failed to submit a new fare offer and that members working for 14 railway companies would strike as a result, on 20, 22 and 29 July.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said the new strikes, part of ongoing labor action by the union, “will show the country how important railway employees are to running the railway industry.”
“My team of negotiators and I are available 24/7 for talks with the train operators and the government,” he said.
Incredibly, however, neither party has made any attempt whatsoever to arrange any meetings or to make a decent offer that could help us reach a negotiated solution.
The government continues to constrain companies and will not allow them to put forward a deal that can settle this dispute.
The declaration marks a new chapter in a bitter and long-running labor dispute.
RMT members have voted 3 times for strike action over the last 12 months while train drivers’ union Aslef has also organized strikes.
Rail services across England were halted earlier this month, after 12,000 drivers went on strike for the second time in a week amid a long-running dispute with operating companies over wages and conditions. Further labor action is expected in July, after Aslef announced a week-long overtime ban.