“The hypocrisy of TFL managers, who stand to hit the bonus jackpot during the Olympics while offering...staff virtually nothing, stinks like a sack of rotting fish." - Bob Crow

STAFF WORKING directly for Transport for London are to take strike action and action short of a strike over the total and abject failure of the organization to offer any kind of meaningful recognition and reward for the huge increase in workload and pressure arising from the extended Olympics period and for attempting to impose changes to working conditions and a unilateral ban on annual leave in some departments.

After an overwhelming vote for action RMT has instructed members to take industrial action as follows:

• Not to book on for any duties starting after 21:30 on Sunday 1st July 2012, returning to duties starting after 21:30 on Monday 2nd July 2012.
• From 19:00 on Sunday 8th July 2012 until 19:00 on Sunday 15th July 2012, not to work any overtime (including rest day working), and to work to contracted hours only.

The action by TFL staff comes as it emerged that senior bosses at the organisation are set to rake in massive Olympics payments themselves.

According to TfL's unaudited annual report, the top seven staff at the organisation are in line to cash in on two years of annual bonuses worth £560,000 which equates to £80,000 each if the system runs smoothly during the Olympic Games.

RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said:

“The rank of hypocrisy of TFL managers, who stand to hit the bonus jackpot during the Olympics while offering their own directly employed staff virtually nothing, stinks like a sack of rotting fish.

These TFL staff will be as busy as anybody else and the attempt to bullying them into bans on annual leave and unilateral changes to working conditions for virtually nothing in return is a disgrace.

RMT remains available for talks and with Boris Johnson directly intervening in the bus dispute there is no excuse for him, as chair of TFL, not to get involved in settling this issue."