Rail strikes

[Krystal n chips]

Originally Posted by Flyhighfirst

In this country it would be the tax payers who benefit. Private sector employees strike to your hearts content. Public sector just make sure if you are going to strike that you have public opinion on your side. Then you are golden!! Problem is with the public sector strikes in the past and current they haven’t quite grasp this.

Take the current scenario. Rail strikes, and the public are strongly against the the strikes. Guarantees the government won’t back down.

Announcement of BA strikes at Heathrow (private company) the public just blames BA for ruining their holiday.

Public sector unions need to realise that they need the people on their side, or they are doomed to failure.

Other than composing a narrative that will appeal to many on JB, do you have any factual evidence to substantiate this claim ?

I only inconsiderately ask, because, if you enter " did the public support the RMT strike", amazingly, MSM reports that they do....even the Mail !. This in no small part due to the composed, articulate and factual interviews with Mick Lynch...in contrast to Shapps and Philps.

The barristers strike almost certainly passed most people by given most people don't actually encounter the profession only their mercenary counterparts....solicitors...and for many, the two will be one and the same..

Coming soon however....

Royal Mail managers vote to strike over job cuts - BBC News

[B Fraser]

Originally Posted by Krystal n chips

I only inconsiderately ask, because, if you enter " did the public support the RMT strike", amazingly, MSM reports that they do....even the Mail !

Mr Chips, Other than repeating a narrative that will appeal to a few on JB, do you have any factual evidence to substantiate this claim ? Has anyone here been asked their opinion ? If so, how did you respond ?

[Krystal n chips]

Originally Posted by B Fraser

Mr Chips, Other than repeating a narrative that will appeal to a few on JB, do you have any factual evidence to substantiate this claim ? Has anyone here been asked their opinion ? If so, how did you respond ?

Mr Fraser,

Much as I hate using polls in general, in this case, have a look at this one, plus, as I said, enter "did the public support the RMT strike"..at the top where in the responses you should see three MSM outlets, the Independent, the Mail ! and the Torygraph...all saying the same...as in yes.

I don't know if anybody here has been asked their opinion, well other than in the bar of the local Con club, or exclusive Golf club perhaps, and hence as there has been no posts to this effect, then clearly I can't respond....now can I

Public divided over support for rail strikes | Ipsos

[B Fraser]

Your link is to a site that says "35% support this week’s strikes" (their capitalisation, not mine). I recall you claiming that as less than 50% voted Conservative, the government have no mandate. Surely you must apply the same level of scrutiny here ?

[Krystal n chips]

Originally Posted by B Fraser

Your link is to a site that says "35% support this week’s strikes" (their capitalisation, not mine). I recall you claiming that as less than 50% voted Conservative, the government have no mandate. Surely you must apply the same level of scrutiny here ?

Yes, it does say 35% and yes, it was capitalised by the site....elsewhere, it says 45 %. hence my reluctance to quote polls....and I've no recollection of mentioning anything about Tory voter statistics...

[radeng]

CJ

radeng - the addition to that mix of one Marples, Ernie, as Transport Minister and (entirely coincidentally) rather big in Tarmac, may not have been particularly helpful !!

Not only 'Tarmac Ernie'. The first Labour Transport minister, Alfred Barnes, got the job because it was a reward for years of being of service to the party in the Co-operative movement. - which one writer described as 'being a party hack'.Barbara Castle was hardly a brilliant performer either. In fact, I can't think of one Transport minister who ever was much good in the job. Of course, to be on top of it, one would need to have good understanding of roads, railways, coastal and cross channel shipping (including to Ireland) and air transport, which is asking a lot of politicians, especially any who have never worked in transport or studied the subject. An Honours degree in Political Science from Oxford may well be the thing to get you into the H of C, but is unlikely to mean that you are capable of sensible decisions in field.as such as telecommunications or transport or economic or defence policy..

[Ancient Observer]

I have a vague memory that A Darling was OK in the Transport Dept.
Maybe delusions of my memory??

[jimtherev]

Originally Posted by Ancient Observer

I have a vague memory that A Darling was OK in the Transport Dept.
Maybe delusions of my memory??

Certainly got stuck in and was well-regarded in the rail industry. But as to the rest???

[Uplinker]

Did he introduce driving on the motorway hard shoulders?

[Krystal n chips]

Originally Posted by Uplinker

Did he introduce driving on the motorway hard shoulders?

Well for somebody who likes to swoop and not dawdle this may seem an attractive option.....albeit illegal.

However, had you said "smart motorway " and /or "all lanes running", this would have been more accurate. They were introduced by a Labour MP, a Ruth Kelly, who is an interesting lady in her own right, to put it politely. She was in no small part influenced by the then "Highways Agency ", the organisation gets rebranded with regular monotony under the "same s$%t, different colour " philosophy in the vain hope nobody will notice how unfit for purpose and incompetent the organisation is..

If they went on strike, nobody would notice and traffic flows / incident handling would improve.

[[email protected]]

If they went on strike, nobody would notice and traffic flows / incident handling would improve.

And at least we wouldn't have pointless signs on the motorways slowing down the traffic for something that was cleared hours ago or never existed in the first place. What a waste of money those were.

[PCTool]

Originally Posted by Chris the Robot

I'm a PPL holder who grew up with aspirations to become a commercial pilot, military flying was not possible due to medical reasons. I currently work as a train driver instructor, I teach people how to drive passenger trains in the UK. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was saving towards self-funding modular training to become a commercial pilot.

If I had to pay £100k for my own training, I could never have become a train driver. Thankfully, ASLEF has worked against any such proposal, the bespoke nature of training based on route and traction (train types) knowledge is favourable to ASLEF's cause but without a strong trade union presence, we could have been left with "pay to drive". Train driving is one of the last well-paid working class trades and selection is regardless of parental wealth. Unique market conditions have worked in our favour but strong trade unionism has been a backstop to protect what we have.

ASLEF has also prevented zero-hours contracts, protected pensions and deterred employers from ripping up our contractual terms and conditions. Drivers have sold extra productivity through ASLEF but it is sold for a fair price, not given away or arbitrarily removed. ASLEF are not a particularly militant trade union on the mainline railway, the last time the drivers at my employer went on strike, I was a young child. ASLEF at this time have not announced strike action where I work.

Train driving is a good job but I suspect I'd rather be flying aeroplanes for a living. If BALPA had taken a firm stance against airlines charging £100k for their MPL schemes and airlines charging £30k for a type rating, maybe I'd have had a much improved chance of doing so? I know a lot of trades and professions have seen their ranks take a big hit to terms, salaries and pensions over the past few decades, we're amongst the last of the hold-outs and have no intentions of joining the race to the bottom.

Well said. I agree 100% and I'm aware that this is to do with RMT which doesn't represent drivers. What he is saying is that he enjoys decent pay for a decent day's work because the workers (through union representation) haven't allowed pay and conditions to be eroded. The aviation industry has gone down the wrong path in my opinion. I'm in this business a long time and knew it was a race to the bottom.

[ChrisVJ]

Originally Posted by radeng

I agree with Fokker 1000 - a trained person up the front end is an added safety feature. There is also a lot of difference between the 'closed' system of the DLR at low speed over short distances and an express covering maybe 100 miles to its first stop. The DLR never gets cows trespassing, and even if it hit one at the low speeds it runs at, you wouldn't get a disaster like that at Polmont.. Shut ticket offices? Brilliant - BUT what happens when the machines don't work? Is this then an excuse to fine the passengers? So I'm going to say Aberdeen from Potters Bar First Class and the machines are down at Potters Bar and Stevenage where I change. Round comes the ticket collector and i offer him the £200+ fare in notes... Is he going to be happy? Especially if he has a lot of people paying cash....if the machines is down, it's quite likely that there will be a lot of people in the same situation.

As far as radio goes, I would love to hear just how complete the coverage of GSM-R is, especially in tunnels......I am sure that not every tunnel on the UK railway network has a leaky feeder for GSM-R, and the same for every cutting.

As far as the former goes, that is almost exactly the situation on some European trains. Tickets dispensed by machines and no manning at station. When the ticket inspector comes round you pay, usually with credit card. Seems to work fine.

[treadigraph]

Ticket machines and no station staff... I had to travel from Lichfield to Tamworth a few years ago, a distance of about 5 miles; already had a ticket which, due to a stupid oversight was in the wallet of a friend who had gone on ahead. Arrived at the Station, ticket machine wanted some stupidly vast sum - about £10 I think - to sell me the necessary travel authorisation... no chance! Train arrived and fortunately there was a conductor who laughed, punched the journey into his machine and said "how does £2.50 sound?"

[Krystal n chips]

Time for another JB righteous outburst of anti union indignation then....this time, the drivers have actually voted to strike, as a last resort, which may be confusing for those unable to distinguish between the RMT and ASLEF...

Train drivers vote for rail strikes over pay - BBC News

[mopardave]

Originally Posted by Flyhighfirst

One striker today said he works in the ticket office and makes £30000/per year. Has 4
kids and wife looks after the kids. Says he can no longer afford to support his family so has resorted to riding his bike to work to save fuel.

If you have have 4 kids and make £30000 and feel you are struggling, tell her to get off her arse and get a job!

Or don't have 4 kids!! I know a train driver.........he told me what he gets in overtime.....eye watering! I also know how much sick he takes. No sympathy here I'm afraid.

[radeng]

I know a train driver.........he told me what he gets in overtime.....eye watering! I also know how much sick he takes. No sympathy here I'm afraid.

Did he tell what his starting and finishing times were and how the shift patterns changed? How many of his sick days were caused by stress? Especially where it becomes effectively a 'split shift' with a driver supposed to some rests in beween the 'splits', there isn't always anywhere for them to rest. See the RAIB reports.....If you have an illness which requires taking certain drugs as a railway employee, you have to go sick because you are not allowed to work. After you get off work, if you returning to work in less than24 hours, you are not allowed to have any alcohol - or so I was told by a maintenance technician I know.. A far cry from the days of the Glasgow and South Western Railway, where if you were pilot on double headed train and regular driver thought you had a bottle of whisky, he might well come over the back of your tender....Or steam days on SNCF where a bottle of wine would be kept cool in a bucket of water...