A plan to ensure a minimum level of service on transport networks during strikes has been described as “doomed to fail” by unions.
The government said the Transport Strikes Bill, which will be put to MPs on Thursday, aims to avoid further disruption from staff strikes.
Further strikes are planned for November 3rd, 5th and 7th.
Aslef, the train drivers’ union, said the law, if enacted, would only lead to “prolonged strikes”.
The UK has seen a spate of rail strikes in recent months as unions clashed with railway companies, Network Rail – which maintains and operates the rail infrastructure – and the government over wages and working conditions.
Prime Minister Liz Truss said: “Hard working people and businesses should not be blackmailed by strikes that have repeatedly paralyzed our transport network this year.”
She added that the plan will limit the “ability of unions to cripple our economy”.
Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef – which represents 96% of train drivers in England, Scotland and Wales – said the government’s proposed minimum service levels “will not work”.
“Liz Truss, while clearly a broken flush, is determined to try to invalidate industrial action.
“The train companies don’t want to offer minimum services because they know it’s a stupid idea. What happens when 100% of passengers try to board trains with a minimum capacity of 40%?” added Mr Whelan.
The latest round of strikes by members of the transport union RMT was announced on Wednesday. It is believed that only 20% of usual services will be operational during the strikes, which are planned for early November, and subsequent disruptions are expected the morning after the strikes.
The RMT called the law “autocratic” and “anti-union”. Secretary General Mike Lynch wrote: “This cynical law prohibits effective legal industrial action on our railroads.
“All Democrats, whether in or out of Parliament, must oppose this draconian attempt to challenge the basic human right to strike,” Lynch added.
Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: “Strikes have hit almost all of us over the last year – whether that means losing a day’s wages at work, having to close your shop, missing important doctor’s appointments or preventing our children from getting to school .
“It is vital that public transport users have some continuity of service to keep the UK moving and growing – this legislation will give everyone the reassurance they need to get on with their daily lives.”
The government wrote that economists estimated a £100m loss to the UK economy during the rail strikes in June 2022.
The opposition Labor Party shadow transport secretary, Louise Haigh MP, said: “Rather than attacking workers, ministers should finally do the job of good government, sit down around the table and find a solution to this dispute.”
A Bill is a proposal for new legislation that must be debated and approved by Parliament before it can be introduced into UK law.
According to the Department of Transport, the transport strike law will mean:
- Transport strikes must meet a minimum level of service – failure to meet this means unions lose legal protection from damages
- Employers indicate the number of staff needed to ensure an adequate level of service during strikes
- Unions must take reasonable steps to ensure that an appropriate number of designated workers also work on strike days
- Specified workers who continue to strike lose their protections from automatic wrongful dismissal
The government added that specific details on how minimum service levels will apply will be determined after public consultation.
It added that employers and unions would have to agree on a minimum level of service “to continue during all strikes over a three-month period”. Otherwise, the Central Arbitration Commission would set the minimum number of services.
Add Comment