Another Day, Another Strike: This Time It's the Railways (Again)

 

The RMT's Campaign Badge

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While the Conservatives continue their in-fighting, giving their members only a Hobson's choice between proven failure and potential disaster (Sunak and Truss), our country has another crisis on its hands - ANOTHER rail strike.

Somerset Independents puts residents first. We stand up for workers. And we try to give fair treatment to campaigners and those they are fighting.

Before the first strike, we contacted the local RMT branch with some questions. We asked the same questions of others but Somerset Labour, Somerset Lib Dems and Somerset Tories did not answer.

But the RMT's Barry West did answer and we published. He also gave us a statement. We did not publish it at the time.

Now we are publishing it. Mr West told us that this was:

"A dispute the RMT did not want and has done all it can to avert, and avoid.

The RMT are seeking reassurances around no compulsory redundancies, they are seeking to protect our members from scathing cuts in incomes for some, and for others it means job losses and changes  on a massive scale, this we believe in some cases would pose a serious safety risk to those that travel by rail.

The wholesale loss of ticket offices, huge changes to terms and conditions, changes to the pension scheme resulting in future hardship are amongst some of the issues.

The last dispute I can remember here in the South West was 1998.

So it is clear to many that rail workers are not militant, for many they have had a pay freeze for around 3 years, the rises in inflation affects rail workers also and I have heard many stories about how it is affecting them as it does many others at this time.

MPs I understand were to get a £2,212 pay rise on 1 April, seeing an MP's basic salary go up to £84,144 a year.

At a time when millions of workers had their wages hit by a National Insurance increase. 

 

And now huge rises in the cost of living and inflation at record high levels.

There has been overwhelming response and support from members and the General public."

 

 

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