Rail operator strike to cause travel disruption for passengers
Rail passengers traveling on the West Midlands Railway are facing disruption this week due to planned strike action.
Members of the Transport Salaried Staff Association (TSSA) are in an ongoing dispute over pay and have confirmed the strike will go ahead as planned after London’s tube strikes were called off.
The stoppage will affect services in Birmingham and the Black Country, Wolverhampton, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Staffordshire on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Strikes involving roster officers, duty train crew managers and control staff are expected to severely impact services on the network.
TSSA general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust said: “As it stands, these strikes will not proceed as planned because the company refuses to provide our members with equality with those in other unions. This is unacceptable, especially given that these are modest demands.”
Ms Eslamdoust added that union representatives had consulted with their members, who were “determined to continue their legitimate action” and that the union had “taken strike action only as a last resort”. The union is seeking parity with other unions in rest day pay.
West Midlands Railway has since advised customers to “only travel if necessary” on Friday and Saturday. The services approved by the operator on both days will be very limited, will be operated on a small number of routes and will adhere to a shortened schedule.
Passengers should note that no trains will run after 7pm on Friday and services will not start until 7am on Saturday.
It comes after strikes by London Underground drivers planned for Tuesday and Thursday in the capital were canceled at the last minute.
The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union had previously announced that its members would be on leave from their jobs for 24 hours from noon on Tuesday and for 24 hours from noon on Thursday.
A union spokesman said: “The employer changed its position at the 11th hour, allowing us to further investigate our members’ concerns about the implementation of new rosters, fatigue and safety issues.
“The dispute is not over and if we do not make sufficient progress further strike action will follow.”
Strikes planned for 16 and 18 June were also canceled, but the union announced new 24-hour strike dates for 2 and 4 June if the dispute is not resolved.
The union said its members opposed a new four-day working week on the tube, but the Aslef train drivers union, which represents a slim majority of tube drivers, supported the Transport for London proposal.
