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LU stick two fingers up to the law and Bakerloo Drivers

Double standards from London Underground have reached a new high. As all drivers are aware, RMT are campaigning for LU to see reason and comply with the law on the discrimination and victimisation of Eamonn Lynch. Eamonn followed instructions from the Network Rail signaller and Bakerloo Control Room and was sacked as a result.
The tribunal ruling told management they were in breach of employment law. The strike on December 18th made clear to LU the strength of feeling on this from all drivers on the line. But still management are intent on ignoring the law and the views of train drivers.
Unbelievably while drivers were taking strike action over the disgraceful treatment of Eamonn, the Train Operations Manager (TOM) at Queen’s Park was wilfully breaching LU rules when it came to his “interpretation” of the ice scraping rules. Apparently the TOM was on his “haunches”, ie hands and knees, with the M door open and scraping the conductor rails with a stick or a brush while the train was moving.
The ice scraping procedures are contained in LUL Rule Book 4 section 6. This involves long standing procedures involving getting the juice off, using SCD’s and an ice scraper. It certainly does not involve the method used by the TOM. His method is also in breach of Network Rail rules GE/RT8000/DC and GE/RT8000 - M4.
When RMT health & safety reps raised this breach of procedures with General Manager Lance Ramsay a whitewash ensued.
Key witnesess were not even interviewed. A cover up was carried out by the Bakerloo Trains Performance Manager.
London Underground’s key behaviours talk about “consistency” and accountability” so you would have thought that the TOM would have been stood down while a full investigation took place with disciplinary action being taken as a result of this wilful breach of procedures. This would have been consistent with how Eamonn was treated. But with London Underground the rules are there for us to follow and for them to break. On top of the double standards and hypocrisy bosses on the Bakerloo line have now decided to harass drivers for taking strike action. Letters were handed out on Thursday telling drivers that their legitimate strike action in December would be counted as non-attendance. In the letters TOMs at Queens Park and Elephant admitted that after snooping into driver’s private business that they ‘had found no evidence that you are a member of RMT/ASLEF’.
Instead of harassing drivers for taking legal industrial action wouldn’t management’s time be better spent resolving this dispute by re-instating Eamonn at Director’s Appeal? It is clear that we are dealing with a management that is out of control. Emboldened by a Tory London mayor and a reactionary Tory government LU bosses are attempting to break the unions on the underground. As well as getting Eamonn his job back, this strike is also about defending trade unionism on the job.
All drivers must stick together and stand up to these bullies.
Do not book on for any duty between 21:00 hours from Friday 14th of January until 20:59 Saturday 15th of January.