Rail union imposes one-week deadline on guards safety deal

The
RMT rail union has given train operators another week to restore safety
responsibility to guards or face strike action.

Last
week, staff at 14 of the 22 train companies voted two-to-one in favour of
strike action after the union claimed that the operators reneged on a deal to
re-introduce key safety elements to the roles of train guards.

The
union is meeting the companies for talks on Friday,  but if an agreement has not been reached by Monday 17 March,
strike dates will be fixed.

“RMT
members around the country are angry that the operators have already cynically
walked away from one agreement on what is a serious safety issue," said
RMT general secretary Bob Crow.

“We
will not allow that to happen again. We already have an agreement with eight
operating companies, and there is absolutely no reason why the others should
not now honour the commitment they made in 2001 and abide by the outcome of an
independent risk assessment,” Crow added.

Companies
yet to sign the agreement on the safety role of guards are:

•
Arriva Trains Merseyside

•
Central Trains

•
Connex South Eastern

•
Govia South Central

•
Midland Mainline

•
Scotrail

•
Silverlink

•
Thames Trains

•
Virgin West Coast

•
Virgin Cross Country

•
Wales and Borders

•
Wessex Trains

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The
operators already signed up to the agreement are GNER; Island Line; Anglia
Trains; Hull Trains; First Great Western; First Great Eastern; First North
Western and Chiltern Line.

By Paul Nelson