EMR shocked and disappointed at vote for strike action

East Midlands Railway is extremely disappointed RMT members have voted in favour of strike action in the midst of an international Covid pandemic and while benefitting from unprecedented levels of taxpayer support.

This is the wrong decision for the railway, the East Midlands and the towns and cities EMR serves.

This vote for strike action follows the RMT’s National Executive decision not to allow EMR Senior Conductors to either view or vote on the latest offer from EMR. This offer was the result of 18 months of close collaboration and followed a previous, less generous offer, which was verbally accepted by local RMT representatives.

This offer to Senior Conductors comes despite a dramatic and sustained fall in the number of passengers travelling across the country.

Since the start of the Covid pandemic, passenger numbers have fallen by as much as 95% which has led to taxpayers underwriting the rail industry to the tune of billions of pounds.

Furthermore, the level of job security for colleagues at EMR and across the railway is in stark contrast to other businesses and industries.

Not a single permanent member of EMR staff has lost their job, been placed on furlough or had their salary reduced.

The RMT has not provided any feedback to EMR to explain their reasons for rejecting the latest offer, which included:

• Reduction in the working week from 37 hours over 5 days to 35 hours over 4 days with no reduction in salary
• A one-off payment of approximately £5,000 for around 75 Senior Conductors
• Introduction of a new Apprenticeship Scheme with generous pay rates: Weeks 1-16 75% of full salary (circa £23,000); Weeks 17-52 85% (circa £26,000) and Week 52 onward 100% (circa £31,000)
• Creation of a new mentor grade which gives a 4% pensionable salary increase

The RMT has also not provided any information to EMR in relation to their next steps and when they may decide to take strike action or action short of a strike. However, they are required to give 14 days notice of any action. 

XXXXXXXXXXX, East Midlands Railway, said:

“This is the wrong decision for the East Midlands and the towns, cities and communities we serve.

“At a time of national crisis, when the Government is paying billions of pounds to keep trains running and protect jobs; this decision damages our ability to support the East Midlands recovery from the Covid pandemic and attract people back to the railway and public transport as a whole.

"Our revised offer was fair; not only did it resolve all areas of the dispute that EMR inherited from the previous franchisee, but it also addressed other key areas that Union representatives told us were important.

"It was the result of nearly 18 months of ongoing collaboration and negotiations with appointed representatives and was an improvement on an offer which was verbally accepted in principle by local representatives previously.

"Nonetheless, the RMT has chosen not to provide any direct feedback to explain why they have rejected the offer.

“To be clear, the terms on offer included a reduction in working days and hours with no change to salary, the introduction of a new and generously paid apprentice scheme, a new Mentor scheme with a 4% salary increase and a number of other improvements. 

"Our absolute priority is to provide safe and sustainable journeys for our customers. In the short term, that means providing transport to those who need it most. Beyond that, it means encouraging passengers back to the railway so we can return to being a sustainable industry that provides jobs, supports growth and links the country. 

"It is clear neither of these priorities are shared by the RMT. 

“Meanwhile, we are reviewing our contingency arrangements to ensure our services continue to operate and help critical workers and others who need to travel, to continue to do so."

Temporary timetables will be published when required and passengers are advised to check www.eastmidlandsrailway.co.uk before their journey to obtain the latest information.