Next week’s London underground strikes cancelled, union announces

Planned strikes by London Underground drivers next week have been suspended.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said six days of planned strikes on the London Underground next week have been called off.

The Aslef union, which represents the vast majority of Tube drivers, also announced that planned strike action has been suspended.

The union said “real progress” had been made with Transport for London (TfL) and confirmed no changes to pension benefits for Tube workers will be made before the next general election.

A third union, Unite, has also withdrawn its strike threat.

However, RMT general secretary Mick Lynch warned “this is not the end of the dispute.”

Members of the RMT were set to go on strike between Sunday 23 July and Friday 28 July in a long-running dispute over pay, pensions and conditions.

Meanwhile, members of Unite and Aslef were due to walk out on July 26 and 28.

The strikes were planned in response to planned cuts to around 600 London Underground jobs, which the RMT says will affect Tube stations and maintenance operations.

The RMT has also accused TfL bosses of attempting to impose a £100m pension cut that they say will make London Underground workers poorer in retirement if approved.

Finn Brennan, Aslef’s organiser on the Underground, said: “After a week of intense negotiations, we have made real progress in making sure our members’ working conditions and pensions are protected from the impact of the Tory government cuts to Transport for London funding.

“There will be no changes to pension benefits before the next general election and any future changes to working conditions and agreements will only be made by negotiation.”

Mick Lynch said: “There has been significant progress made by our negotiating team in Acas talks with TfL.

“However, this is not the end of the dispute nor is it a victory for the union as yet.

“Our members were prepared to engage in significant disruptive industrial action and I commend their resolve.

“RMT’s strike mandate remains live until October and we are prepared to use it if necessary.

“We will continue to negotiate in good faith as we always have done with TfL and it was only the steadfast commitment of our members in being prepared to take sustained strike action that has forced the employer to make significant concessions.

“Our campaign to defend jobs, conditions and our members’ pensions will continue in the coming weeks and months.”

Glynn Barton, chief operating officer at TfL, said: “We are pleased that the RMT, Aslef and Unite have suspended their planned industrial action next week.

“This is good news for London and we will continue to work closely with our trade unions to discuss the issues and seek a resolution.”

London mayor Sadiq Khan said: “I want to thank the RMT, Aslef and Unite who worked really closely with TfL (Transport for London) to pull these strikes off for next week.

“Negotiations are what it is all about.

“Our transport workers were heroes during the pandemic keeping transport going to allow key workers to get to work.”

Union leaders wrote to Mr Khan in April, calling for an end to job losses and other cuts on London Underground, warning that stations were closing or being left unstaffed because of cost-cutting.

In the letter, Mick Lynch wrote: “Stations were closed on 2,115 occasions last year, compared with a pre-pandemic high of 649.

“Of course, this is only a figure for closures. More often, stations will have been left open with no staff.

Mr Lynch said he was concerned about the “strain” the proposed cuts are putting on Tube workers, claiming they face a third of their pension being cut.

He added: “This situation cannot go on. I urge you to refuse to make further spending cuts on London Underground.”

The UK has seen nearly a year of train strikes across the board by RMT and other rail unions.

Unions say any pay offer should reflect the rising cost of living – with the inflation rate only recently having dipped below 10 per cent.

But the rail bosses say the sector is under pressure to save money following the pandemic and reforms are needed to afford pay increases and modernise the railway.