This is the ASLEF trade union which is behind the call for strike action by train drivers. The strike is due to start on 30th January and will continue until 5 February. The cause: a pay dispute with the government and British rail companies. The latter will be affected in turn during this week's strike, which became official on 15 January.
" We gave the government every opportunity to sit down at the negotiating table, but it's been a long time since that happened. a year since we had any contact with the Ministry of Transport. It is clear that he does not want to resolve this conflict."says Mick Whelan, General Secretary of ASLEF. " Many of our members have not received a single penny pay rise for half a decade, during which time inflation has soared, taking with it the rising cost of living. (...) The government has now tried its old trick of changing the rules when it can't win and has introduced legislation on minimum service levels. But this new law, as we told civil servants during the consultation period, will not reduce industrial unrest. It will probably only make them worse. There is no excuse. The government and the rail companies need to come to the negotiating table with a realistic offer so that we can end this dispute and work together to secure the future of our railways. "continues Mick Whelan.
