RMT suspends next week’s South Western Railway strike action
Rail workers union RMT has suspended strike action on South Western Railway that was due for next week to allow talks to take place this Friday.
The action was due to take place between for 24 hours on 9 March from 10am and the same period on 12 March.
Guards and drivers on the service have now been asked to work as usual on the above dates.
In January the union, which represents transport employees in the UK across all sectors, voted for further direct action after a record-breaking 27-day strike in December.
More than 80 per cent of workers who took part in a ballot supported further walkouts. Of 850 union members eligible to vote, 505 chose to do so. Of those, 416 voted in favour of strike action.
RMT’s demands centre around the role of the train guard, and whether they have control over operating carriage doors. The union said this is important to help keep passengers safe when boarding and alighting the train.
A spokesperson for South Western Railway said, “We are pleased for our customers and colleagues that next week’s strikes have been suspended, we hope that we can now find a solution to bring a permanent end to this dispute for everyone’s sake.
“We are now working hard to reinstate the full timetable for next week.”
More to follow.