March 19, 2010


Train commuters are braced for the first national rail strike in 16 years
Philip Pank, Transport Correspondent Rail and air bosses were locked in a trial of strength with union leaders last night as industrial action threatened to bring transport chaos in the run-up to Easter.

The RMT union will decide today whether to call the first national rail strike in 16 years and shop stewards at Unite will decide whether to go ahead with three days of strikes at British Airways planned from midnight tonight.

The widespread disruption would be a severe blow to the Government as it prepares to call a general election. Gordon Brown condemned the BA strike after Labour came under pressure over its links to Unite; 150 MPs have signed an early day motion calling on him to intervene in the rail dispute.

Maintenance workers belonging to the RMT union have voted to strike over job cuts and an efficiency drive. The union will announce this morning the results of a second ballot of 5,500 signallers. A strike by signallers would halt trains across the country.

Bob Crow, the RMT leader, has warned against booking rail travel at Easter. He said: “All the signs are that our signalling members are going to back taking industrial action and that will give us a mandate across the railways for strikes in defence of safety-critical jobs and safe working practices.”

Last night, key players in the BA dispute held their first face-to-face talks since December. Willie Walsh, the BA boss, is understood to have tabled an eleventh-hour deal. However, Tony Woodley, the joint general secretary of Unite, said that there was little sign of progress. The talks were adjourned shortly before midnight.

According to a source close to the negotiations, Mr Walsh told Unite that the strike threat had already cost BA £27 million in lost bookings. He warned that if it went ahead the company, which would save £62 million a year by removing a steward from every flight, would be forced to make deeper cuts.

The Times understands that Mr Walsh’s deal offered less favourable terms than the one he withdrew last week. In newspaper advertisements today, he says that the strike will be a blow “not only to our customers and to British Airways but also to Britain”.

In the absence of a deal, the biggest contingency plan in BA’s history will swing into operation tonight as its 230 aircraft and 22 charter jets are repositioned to carry as many passengers as possible over the coming three days.

Unite will hold a mass meeting at Sandown Park racecourse to rally the cabin crew ahead of the strike. Aviation unions in the US, Australia, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, India, Norway, the Netherlands, Canada, Jordan and Argentina have said that they will take any lawful action to show solidarity with the BA crew. Four more strike dates have been set from March 27.