London Transport Mitie Engineers And Electricians Take Industrial Action

TUBE UNION RMT confirmed today that electricians and engineers working for contractors Mitie on the TFL contract are to take strike action and action short of a strike in a dispute over redundancies and unilateral changes to working conditions.

Members are instructed as follows:

Not to book for any duties staring on or after 00:01 hours on Monday 3rd June 2013 returning to work for duties starting on or after 00:01 hours on Tuesday 4th June 2013.
Furthermore members are also instructed to take the following industrial action short of strike action as outlined below: -

From 00:01 hours on Saturday 1st June 2013 until further notice

Members are instructed not to work any overtime (including Rest Day working).
RMT representatives have met with the company over its proposals for possible redundancies and changes to workers’ terms and condition, changes that RMT says are totally unacceptable. During the negotiations with the company RMT negotiators drafted a proposal which would avoid redundancies, but the company has point-blank refused to consider the perfectly reasonable suggestions and were not even prepared to run a trial of the RMT proposals.

As a result RMT called a dispute with Mitie on their TFL contract and balloted for both strike action and action short of a strike, recording massive majorities for both. The company have now resorted to trying to mislead staff over their rights to withdraw their labour, a strategy that has simply increased the anger on the shop floor.

RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said:

“In order to resist the attacks by Mitie on RMT’s members jobs working conditions, the union executive decided to ballot Mitie workers on the TFL contract for strike action and industrial action short of a strike and they voted overwhelmingly yes. Once again this dispute raises the whole question of the use of outside contractors as a way of undermining jobs and working conditions.

“The union demands that the company agree to the proposed trial of our alternative option and that no changes are made to RMT members current terms and conditions. It is the failure to agree on our perfectly reasonable proposals that has now led us to call strike action and industrial action short of strike. RMT remains available for talks.”