RMT regional officer Jared Wood said the union wanted to see “real progress” towards a shorter working week because of the impact long-term shift work is having on London Underground staff
As picket lines were set up outside shuttered Tube entrances on Monday morning (September 8) businesses based inside stations questioned what the week ahead will look like for their own takings. At Waterloo Station the impact of the Tube strikes was noticed early on in the rush hour as footfall dropped.
MyLondon spoke to staff working at cafés, grab and go food outlets and book shops, and their responses all echoed a similar narrative – this was a morning rush like no other. As our reporter grabbed a quick cup of tea from the FCB Coffee kiosk, located right at the entrance of the station, an employee explained the prime location usually attracts many customers but they had a noticeable drop off in customers ordering their favourite brews.
She told MyLondon: “It’s usually much busier at [the morning rush hour] time of day, a lot of people are either working from home today or too caught up [in the disruptions] to buy something.” She also explained her own struggles to get to work and the decision to make over taking an Uber Boat service to beat traffic on the roads to get home.
Venturing further into the vast station, our reporter stopped by Upper Crust where fresh baguettes were still being bought but nowhere near the usual rate. An RMT spokesperson stressed the purpose of the Tube strikes is not to impact small businesses.
They said: “We are not going on strike to disrupt small businesses or the public. This strike is going ahead because of the intransigent approach of TfL management and their refusal to even consider a small reduction in the working week in order to help reduce fatigue and the ill-health effects of long-term shift work on our members. We believe a shorter working week is fair and affordable, particularly when you consider TfL has a surplus of £166 million last year and a £10 billion annual operating budget.”
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union including drivers, signallers and maintenance workers launched a series of strikes over pay and conditions. The action started on Sunday but the biggest impact will be from Monday through to Friday 8am.
Transport for London (TfL) warned there will be few or no services between Monday and Thursday. Picket lines were mounted outside Tube stations on Monday. There will also be no DLR services on Tuesday and Thursday because of a strike by RMT members in a separate pay dispute.
TfL has offered a 3.4% pay rise which it described as “fair” and said it cannot afford to meet the RMT’s demand for a cut in the working week. Nick Dent, London Underground’s director of customer operations, said union demands for a cut in the 35-hour week were “simply unaffordable” and would cost hundreds of millions of pounds.
The last Tube-wide strike was three years ago, over pay and pensions, but Mr Dent said this week’s action will be different because separate groups of workers will walk out on different days. “It will be very damaging for us,” he added.
Joe Ryle, campaign director of the 4 Day Week Foundation, said: “We offer our full support to the RMT leading the fight for a 32-hour working week. Every union that takes action to secure a shorter working week brings the four-day week closer to reality for everyone. It’s a bold and necessary stand, and these workers deserve widespread support. The five-day week is a century-old model that no longer reflects how we live and work today. We are long overdue an update.”
RMT regional officer Jared Wood said the union wanted to see “real progress” towards a shorter working week because of increased levels of fatigue. Speaking from a picket line outside Kings Cross Tube station, he told the PA news agency that the RMT did not want to call more strikes after this week’s walkouts ended.
But he said the union had a mandate from its members for further industrial action if the dispute was not resolved. “Our members are not asking for a lot, but we want to see real progress towards a shorter working week,” he said. Mr Wood added that the RMT was prepared to discuss a long-term deal.
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