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The RMT rail workers’ union strike over pay and working conditions is expected to cause major disruptions to the UK’s rail network for the next five days. Photo by Andy Rain/EPA-EFE
Jan. 3 (UPI) — A nationwide rail strike began Tuesday that will shut down much of Britain’s public transportation network for five full days while sending urban commuters scrambling for alternatives. The strike — led by more than a dozen train operators and the Rail, Maritime and Transport union at Network Rail — immediately cut train service to about 20% capacity while services have been scaled back to daylight hours only. Advertisement
The walkout comprises two 48-hour periods — one that began on Tuesday and another that will start on Friday, while railroad engineers in the Aslef union are planning to stay home on Thursday.
The Aslef strike was expected to cause the most pain, with services suspended by 15 train operators, including Avanti, Southeastern, Thameslink, and TransPennine Express.
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The strike comes amid several weeks of discord over low pay and poor working conditions as Britons continue to feel the crush of a worldwide inflation crisis.
A national overtime ban was also said to be a major factor in the decision to strike.
In mid-December, RMT — which is the country’s biggest rail union — rejected a pay offer from the government, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak saying the government had been fair and reasonable in its approach to agreeing to public sector pay raises.
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But Union leaders accuse the Conservative government of using stall tactics as negotiations have reached “radio silence” in the weeks since, according to RMT chief Mick Lynch.
The first day of the strike on Tuesday shut down rail service throughout Britain, with about 40,000 RMT workers in Wales, Scotland and England walking off the job, including those who serve in critical roles such as signal operators.
Areas lucky enough to still have service will only see one train per hour on major routes, authorities said.
Transit officials have urged passengers to find alternate methods of travel and to only use public transportation as a last resort. Network Rail also encouraged its riders to check online for updates on when services will return to normal.
Meanwhile, RMT chief Lynch accused British Secretary of Transportation Mark Harper of “not telling the truth” to union leaders, and added that the government had “undermined the negotiations.”
“They keep saying that they’re facilitating a deal. And I think it’s absolutely the opposite to that,” Lynch said. “The executives who run the industry day on day are in despair at what the government is making them say in these talks.”
Harper later denied that the government was “blocking a settlement.”
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