From Steve Hedley, Regional Organiser ...

Maintenance “optimisation” is an attempt to move the vast majority of the 14day exam out to 28 days endangering the public and our members jobs

This process came to light following meetings with LU Management on this subject and having had a trial put upon RMT Members at Upminster Depot. The trial was brought under the guise of gauging the use of consumable items [when carrying out the important task of 14 daily exam]. It has since become very clear that this work was nothing to do with measuring how many brake blocks were being used etc but a way of getting evidence to support management's view that they can push the time scale out from 14 days to 28 days between the trains being put over a pit and checked for such things as brake block wear and cracks in brackets under the train, that cannot be checked any other way. [It’s the old London Underground trick of having the answer they want ie. it can be moved to 28 days, then getting 'evidence' to support it.]

This has serious safety implications for both the travelling public and also other members of staff eg. Train Operators and Track Staff as the RMT believe this is a clear reduction in maintaining the trains to the current assured levels and feel it now puts a huge shadow over how well maintained the trains would be under these plans.

It has also become clear that CMO Management intend to extend this trial across ALL the LU fleet depots and we are quite sure other areas within CMO, The RMT asked key questions over Safety and importantly the safe guarding against any Job Losses for the very people who will be expected to carry out this trial . We were not satisfied by management’s answers either on safety where there was clearly a greater risk to the public nor on jobs where they refused to guarantee that there would be no job losses.

And why are they doing this?.......This is a blatant attempt to save money by reducing the maintenance and the staff who carry out this work .

You might ask how do we know this?.......Well it is cited in the company’s plans to help save £60MILLION+ over the next 3 years(amongst other attacks on RMT Members in Fleet as well as other areas of LU) and when we asked on numerous occasions for security over jobs, all we got back was a point blank NO!

All management say is that we already have a No compulsory redundancies to fleet staff this means if you are found to be surplus to requirements then you could be offered work anywhere within London Underground. With your pay reflecting the shift and grade you would be now working, this would have a massive impact on your everyday living and your pension (yet a further attack at the very RMT Members being asked to do this trial)

As LU CMO Management have refused to give any assurance on the concerns raised in the meetings, we have been left with no choice but to tell them that RMT members WILL NOT be assisting in any way with this trial as it will be putting them or their work colleagues out the gate, The RMT take the safety of the travelling public very seriously and cannot be party to putting unfit trains into service for the Public and other RMT Members to travel or work on .We cannot be part of building our own gallows by cooperating with a trial that will endanger people and cost jobs.

We will be discussing this issue at the next Fleet LUFleet Branch held on the 21st July @ The Exmouth Arms, Euston from 6pm. With a view of putting it to our Executive of holding a ballot of LUFleet RMT members to have a work to rule in all Depots in LU Fleet, until we get the assurances we have been seeking.

Yours Sincerely

Steve Hedley Regional Organiser

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