Ministers have avoided talks to stop Christmas railway strikes, union RMT | Railway strikes

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The RMT union has accused ministers of disappearing rather than further talks to avoid new railway strikes starting on Christmas Eve.

Commuters hoping to travel by train on Saturday face more disruption and cancellations, with most services ending by 3pm, while some routes will not run at all.

Thousands of RMT union members will strike at Network Rail from 6pm on December 24th until 6am on December 27th.

The union said ministers were “missing” and “abdicating responsibility”. No further talks expected since union and industry leaders met with Railways Minister Hugh Merriman last week.

Train cancellation fee

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch added: “The union remains open for talks to resolve this dispute. But until the government gives the railway industry a mandate to reach a negotiated settlement on job security, wages and working conditions, our industry campaign will continue into the new year, if necessary.”

The union said it had settled wage deals with other employers including Skrill, Transport for Wales, Eurostar and Mercerel, in increments of between 6% and 10%.

A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “After two years of virtual Christmas, the British public deserve better than having their festive celebrations affected by strikes.”

The last intercity departures on many long-distance trains will be on the morning of December 24, while some routes will not run at all. Continuing industrial strikes that fell short of strike action against train operators, including bans on overtime, would also contribute to severe disruption on parts of the railway.

The RMT said it was not targeting Christmas travel during the strike, as there are no commuter trains scheduled to run on the official Christmas holiday, except for a few isolated Boxing Day services. The operators who had planned trains for December 26 – Eurostar, Merseyrail and Stansted Express – have canceled all services.

graphics delays

However, the rail industry said the schedules — with no staff signing off for shifts after 6pm on Christmas Eve — meant it could not be certain where the disruption occurred, and all passenger trains must be in depots before the action begins.

The last trains from London to Edinburgh and Newcastle will leave at 11am, while those traveling the other way from Scotland to the capital will need to leave by 8am. No direct trains will be running between London and Nottingham or Sheffield, while in both cases the last trains will depart between Manchester and Liverpool at around 2pm.

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