Southern and Thameslink rail staff vote for industrial action but don't back strike

The RMT union balloted more than 40,000 members in Network Rail and across train operating companies.

While nationally the vast majority voted for strike action, staff working at Govia Thameslink Railway, which runs Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express services, only backed industrial action ‘short of a strike’.

Even if GTR employees do not walk out, a strike by Network Rail staff could still lead to disruption in Sussex.

The RMT is now demanding urgent talks with Network Rail and the 15 train operating companies balloted to find a negotiated settlement to the dispute over jobs, pay and safety.

Mick Lynch, the union’s general secretary, said his members ‘want a decent pay rise, job security and no compulsory redundancies’. The RMT’s national executive committee will meet to discuss a timetable for strike action from mid-June.

The Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators, said the government had stumped up £16.9billion to keep the railway’s running in 2020/21 and passenger numbers are still 75 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

RDG chair Steve Montgomery said: “All train operators want to offer their staff a pay rise and are working hard to make that happen. But, as an industry, we have to change our ways of working and improve productivity to help pay our own way – the alternatives of asking taxpayers to shoulder the burden.”

Meanwhile Network Rail called on the RMT to ‘find a compromise and avoid damaging industrial action’ as they were at a ‘key point’ in the railway’s recovery from the pandemic.

Andrew Haines, Network Rail’s chief executive, said: “Any industrial action now would be disastrous for our industry’s recovery and would hugely impact vital supply and freight chains. It would also serve to undermine our collective ability to afford the pay increases we want to make.”

ASLEF, the train drivers’ union, is not currently involved, but the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association, which represents a range of station, on-board, operational, control, engineering, managerial and support staff, is demanding assurances over job security, terms and conditions and inflation-matching pay rises.

The TSSA is consulting its reps across all companies and is standing ready to ballot its members for action.