Jeremy Corbyn speaks on the Euston picket line
Some UK train routes are seeing their last service of the day as rail strikes continue across the country.
Around 45,000 workers employed by Network Rail and 14 train operators ‒ members of the RMT Union ‒ have walked for 24 hours over a long-running dispute over pay, working conditions and conditions.
The affected rail companies published emergency timetables earlier in the week, with some “last services” of the day departing at 3pm, 4pm or even 1.30pm.
Jeremy Corbyn has taken to the picket line at Euston station with striking rail workers, saying he felt the sacking of former shadow transport minister Sam Tarry for doing the same was “very unfair”.
“Sam is a trade unionist like me, he used to work for the TSSA, he picketed to support his union and its members. I think sacking him from his shadow position was very unfair,” Corbyn said.
Strike misery will continue tomorrow for London’s rail users as workers walk off the job on the Tube, London Overground and some London bus routes.
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The working class “back as a movement, an energy” – Mick Lynch
RMT union general secretary Mick Lynch said amid the rail strike that the working class was “back as a movement” and “back as energy”.
The general secretary of the RMT union has given a speech at an event organized by the group Enough is Enough, which aims to campaign against the cost of living crisis.
He said: “The working class is back. We didn’t come back just as an idea. We return as movement, we return as energy. You’ve heard it before. Those times are over.
“We refuse to be meek, we refuse to be humble. We refuse to wait on politicians, political writers and we refuse to be poorer.
“And they want to chain the unions even more than now. And why do they do it? They do it in the interest of their class, that’s how society works.
“And the sooner people across the main political lines, the Labor Party and others, recognize that, the better off we will be.
“They act in their class interests, it’s time we act in our class interests.”
Lamiat Sabin August 18, 2022 4:47 p.m
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Jeremy Corbyn seen on the picket line with a black eye
Jeremy Corbyn has been spotted with a black eye on a picket line outside London’s Euston station.
Corbyn, who appeared in support of striking rail workers, said he had suffered a black eye and a split lip after tripping while jogging.
Corbyn criticized Sir Keir Starmer’s sacking of a shadow transport minister for granting interviews from a picket line last month.
The former Labor leader said Sam Tarry’s treatment was “very unfair”.
He added: “Sam is a unionist like me, he used to work for the TSSA, he went on pickets to support his union and its members. I think firing him from his shadow position was very unfair.”
Corbyn told Tarry after his sacking that he was “very sorry because he was doing a really good job, he was trying to develop a… much better national transport strategy”.
Jeremy Corbyn has a black eye and split lip on the picket line
The former Labor leader appeared on a picket line outside London’s Euston station to support striking rail workers
Dominic McGrath August 18, 2022 3:51 pm
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Rail strikes have hit Scottish hotels, GM says
The chairman of the Highland Hotels Association has said this summer’s train strikes have hit business, with the property he manages at 30 to 40 per cent less capacity than usual in August.
Emmanuel Moine, managing director of the Glen Mhor Hotel in Inverness and chairman of the HHA, told the BBC: “We’ve had some cancellations and the hotel is 60 to 70 per cent full when we should be fully booked .
“We are in August, so obviously it has an impact on tourism.
“I have been talking to all the hoteliers in Inverness and we have the same problem.
“We had a great tourist season, but we do everything we can to correct the problem and it doesn’t help.”
Lucy Thackray August 18, 2022 3:42 pm
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Shapps becoming ‘increasingly hysterical’ about strikes, says Mick Lynch
RMT Union boss Mick Lynch has accused Grant Shapps of becoming “increasingly hysterical” amid ongoing rail strikes across the country.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast from the picket line, Mr Lynch said: “Shapps is getting more hysterical, I try to keep a calm temper in everything I say. I’m not angry about it; I’m determined to get a deal “.
“What I think you’re seeing is a man who is worried about his future.
“He has to try to flex his right-wing muscles in the face of a parade of two really right-wing people who will be his boss,” he added, referring to the current Conservative leadership race.
Mick Lynch: Grant Shapps becomes ‘more and more hysterical’
Mick Lynch has accused Grant Shapps of becoming “increasingly hysterical” amid ongoing rail strikes across the country. The general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union accused the Transport Secretary of “flexing his right-wing muscles” as he is concerned. about his future career under Tory leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. “Shapps is getting more hysterical, I try to keep a calm temper in everything I say. I’m not angry about it, I’m determined to get a deal,” added Mr. Lynch. Sign up for our newsletters.
Lucy Thackray 18 August 2022 15:29
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How much do railroad workers earn?
Members of the RMT Union on strike today cover a variety of roles, from low-paid cleaners to station guards, train staff and signalling.
Much has been made of train drivers’ salaries, which range from £50 to £70,000 in the UK, but drivers are not involved in today’s RMT Union strikes (they were in ‘Aslef of Saturday).
According to Glassdoor.co.uk, these are the average salaries for key transport roles in the UK.
- The average basic salary for a train driver in the UK is £54,001
- Network Rail Signaling Technician: £34,350
- Network Rail employee: £25,318
- London Underground train operator: £62,829
- London train driver: £66,000
- London Underground station supervisor: £59,241
- London Underground Customer Service Assistant: £37,010
- TFL Bus Driver: £26,865
Lucy Thackray August 18, 2022 2:43 pm
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Can I get a refund or change the travel time if my train is canceled due to strikes?
Many will see their planned train journeys canceled due to today’s strike, while some may choose not to travel by train due to the travel chaos.
Either way, you should be able to get a refund for your train ticket or use it on another day (there’s often a set time period for the latter).
The National Rail website has published guidance on this, as well as individual train operators affected by the strikes.
Here’s a summary of everything you need to know to get a refund or reschedule your trip:
Can I get a refund if my train is canceled due to rail strikes?
A series of spring and summer transport strikes have caused chaos for UK travelers and tourists alike. But what rights do you have when it comes to getting your money back?
Lucy Thackray August 18, 2022 2:30 pm
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Are there any train services running today?
Not all train routes are out of action during today’s strikes, although with around 20 per cent of regular services running, it is a skeleton network.
Most of the train companies involved in the strikes published amended “emergency” timetables earlier in the week, with some showing just two or three train services running on key routes such as London to Scotland.
Many services will end in the early or mid-afternoon, some as early as 2 or 3 pm. GWR has published its latest departure times on social media this morning, with the final Exeter-London service leaving at 3.18pm. Meanwhile, the last Avanti train from London Euston to Glasgow Central is scheduled to leave at 1.30pm.
With the TransPennine Express, just two services will run from Edinburgh to Newcastle today, the latter at 2.10pm. A service is scheduled to go north between the two cities at 1:17 p.m. On Saturday, the second day of strike action, the TPE will not run any services between Newcastle and Edinburgh.
These are the services planned for today:
Rail strikes: which trains are running on Thursday and Saturday?
Many UK train services will be off limits
Lucy Thackray August 18, 2022 2:03 pm
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Rails can return to normal if Shapps ‘loosens shackles’ on train companies, says Lynch
RMT union chief Mick Lynch has claimed the railways can “go back to normal” if Transport Secretary Grant Shapps “loosens the shackles” on train companies.
Speaking to The Mirror, Lynch said: “If the government changes its position and Grant Shapps loosens the shackles on these companies, we can get a deal done very quickly and we can get the railways back to normal.”
However, the Department for Transport (DfT) has said the government has nothing to do with the negotiations.
A DfT spokesman said: “We have been very clear that the Government and the Transport Secretary are not involved in the negotiations. It is for unions and employers, not the Government, to engage in meaningful talks to avoid damaging strike action and avoid chaos on the railways.
“That has long been the convention and has been the government’s position under Labor and Conservative governments.”
Helen Coffey August 18, 2022 1:02 p.m
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Strikes ‘not the powerful tool they once were’, says DfT
The Department for Transport has claimed that strikes are “not the powerful tool they once were”.
In response to trade union boss Mick Lynch’s criticism of transport secretary Grant Shapps this morning, a DfT spokesman said: “Union bosses are no longer able to stop the country because, unlike them , the world has changed and people simply work from home.
“All these strikes are doing is hurting the very people the unions claim to represent, many of whom will be out of pocket again and…