Rail union to ballot ScotRail workers for strike action

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has said they are balloting ScotRail and Caledonian Sleeper members for industrial action.

The union says they have been in pay negotiations with both companies, however, they have not managed to strike a deal.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “It is ludicrous that the MSPs ultimately responsible for running these services were taking bumper pay rises whilst subjecting workers to significant hardship during a cost-of-living crisis."

RMT has said they are balloting strike action and industrial action short of a strike in the form of a ban on overtime, rest day working and higher-grade duties.

The ballot will open on Thursday, July 18, 2024, and will close on Thursday, August 8 2024.

A spokesperson for Transport Scotland said: “While train planning and staff rotas are operational matters for ScotRail, we fully expect any timetable to give the best reliability and availability for passengers and that changes are communicated well in advance to enable effective journey planning.

“We acknowledge the desire of rail unions to negotiate a fair settlement for their members.

“ScotRail, as a public body and the employer, has responsibility and the ability to negotiate within the limits of public sector pay metrics. However, as rail unions have been made aware, any offer beyond these requires Scottish Government approval at senior level following the appropriate process.

“We would encourage rail unions to continue meaningful dialogue with ScotRail, so that a mutually agreeable outcome can be reached as soon as possible.”

Phil Campbell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director, said: “We’re disappointed that the RMT is balloting its members for industrial action following the pay offer made last week and we encourage members to vote to reject it.

“We recognise the hard work of our colleagues and the cost-of-living challenges faced by families across the country and hope that we can come to an agreement on pay which reflects this, as well as providing value for money for taxpayers.

“We want to resolve this matter with trade unions and will remain fully committed to further discussions.”

Kathryn Darbandi, managing director of Caledonian Sleeper said: “We are disappointed that the RMT has taken this action.

"We are at the early stages of positive discussions and for this reason we recommend that our team vote to reject.

“We remain committed to ongoing and open dialogue with employees and the RMT.

"It is our hope that we can reach an agreement for our team, without impacting the reliability of our service.”