Following on from their Summer strikes, RMT cleaners on London Underground will strike again this Friday 30th November and Saturday 1st December.
Cleaners are still pursuing sick pay, free travel, pensions and other demands that would bring dignity at work.
On 29th November until Saturday, cleaners (and security staff) on Docklands Light Railway, working for Carlisle cleaning company, will strike in pursuit of a living wage and other demands.
National Rail cleaners on East Coast Mainline, London Midland, First Transpennine Express and the Tyne and Wear Metro are also striking in continuation of ongoing disputes.
This is the first ever nationally-coordinated strike action of cleaners that the rail industry has ever seen. It is a big step towards knitting together workers who have been deliberately divided from their colleagues through privatisation and sub-contracting.
It will also lift the profile of cleaners in the transport industry. There will be rallies in every major city where strikes are taking place. Cleaners' work will not be taken for granted so easily after this.
National cleaners' action will boost separate ongoing disputes, which otherwise risk losing momentum. For workers who earn little and are demoralised through outrageous treatment at work, it takes immense courage and commitment to keep striking.
Workers across the transport industry need to get behind the cleaners' disputes, not because cleaners are 'weak' and need support, but because they have shown strength and courage. They have taken a brave step forward; we should all stand behind them. Their struggle is an example to us all.
On London Underground, drivers and station staff can help swell picket lines, giving cleaners confidence to refuse to cross. Agency cleaners are vulnerable; many have worked alongside permanently-employed cleaners for years, but they are not directly involved in the strike. But if they physically can't get into work, what could the employer say?
LU-employed drivers and station staff could also refuse to cross picket lines. When LU see trains cancelled, they will start putting pressure on Initial and ISS to settle this dispute.
We will be working to make sure the strike is a success. But we can't expect a swift resolution from intransigent employers, so we will need to keep planning ahead. It's excellent that RMT has agreed to pay strike pay; this means cleaners can keep striking until they win. It's also good that the RMT has agreed to set up an appeal fund. Money from the rest of the labour movement will soon come flooding in to keep cleaners in the fight.
Details of picket lines soon to follow. See you there!
