Industrial action

From Steve Hedley, RMT Regional Organiser

Dear colleagues,

I wrote to Gerry Duffy, Director of Employee Relations yesterday because of serious safety concerns that have led many drivers to refuse to work on safety grounds. Amongst the drivers concerns are the absence of Emergency Response Unit staff who cover the whole network and signalling technicians who cover the Northern, Jubilee and Piccadilly lines.

In the latest episode of RMTv, from the 21st of June, General Secretary Bob Crow discusses the Tube Lines and DLR dispute and cuts in the public sector.

There are more videos at the RMTv site or you can subscribe to RMTv's Youtube channel here

1. Tube Lines has failed in its attempt to get the High Court to grant an injunction banning the Tube Lines Strike.

2. Click 'read more' to read RMT's response to London Underground circular erroneously claiming that the Emergency Response Unit will be available as normal.

Stratford no.1 branch submited the following resolution to be debated at the emergency Regional Council meeting in June, but withdrew the resolution at the meeting ...

This union notes that the decision of the GGC to ballot members on London Underground for industrial action against jobs cuts has yet to be implemented. We strongly urge the union to commence this process as soon as possible.

The employer is proceeding with its job cutting plan:

• Admin staff preferencing has already taken place.

The new issue of our 'RMT London Calling' newsletter reports on next week's industrial action on Tube Lines and Docklands Light Railway, and on the approaching ballot of London Underground members.

It also reports on RMT's victory on ill-health pensions, our campaigning to bring London Overground (including the extended East London Line) into public ownership, John McDonnell's Bill to stop injunctions against strikes for technical trivialities, and RMT's plans to participate in the LGBT Pride march on 3 July.

RMT members on Docklands Light Railway will strike on 23-26 June after the company refused to give workers any reward for their co-operation with the introduction of new three-car trains.

The extra carriage on each train means that PSAs work with 50% more capacity, so in effect, DLR is saving the cost of half a PSA - around £25,000 - per train. Yet it refuses to share the benefits of three-car running with staff.

This resolution, submitted by the Regional Council Executive, was carried unanimously by the April meeting of the Regional Council ...

This Regional Council is very frustrated by the lack of progress in carrying out the union's decision to ballot our members for industrial action to stop London Underground's plan to slash 800 jobs.

We understand the problems caused by the anti-union laws. However, we believe that the union can and must, as a matter of urgency, prepare and carry out this ballot.

We remind our national officers that 800 jobs are at stake.

This is an official RMT circular - IR/61/10 dated 18th of February 2010, from General Secretary Bob Crow.

I write to advise branches that victory has been achieved in the above dispute which has been concluded following talks at ACAS and the industrial action has been suspended.

Click '2 attachments' / file names to download a leaflet and the text of the agreement reached at ACAS.

Following developments today at ACAS, the RMT has agreed to suspend ALL action for this Sunday (and subsequent Sundays following this).

Over the next few weeks, a procedure will be agreed whereby any discussions on roster changes will need to go through a defined process that allows for full discussions to occur at local, functional and company council levels.