Talks have produced nothing and the strikes remain strong: London Underground bosses continue to face disruption over their forced regrading of workers in the reintroduction of Night Tube on the Central and Victoria lines.
Solidarity is needed from across the labour movement in the run up to the next action (strikes on the Central and Victoria lines, nights of 10-11 and 11-12 December, and 17-18 and 18-19 December) and another strike across all existing Night Tube lines (Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly, Victoria) on 18 December.
Underground bosses will be keen to stop action on 18 December, the last Saturday before Christmas. Another show of strength, as on 26 November, is important to maintain momentum.
A reballot is under way (22 November to 20 December) on the Night Tube dispute. 10,000 RMT members across the Tube and Transport for London (TfL) are now preparing for a ballot (13 December to 10 January) on action to defend pension arrangements, staffing levels, and terms and conditions. This follows an announcement that up to 600 jobs on stations are at risk.
The attack on work-life balance in the grade consolidation fight on Night Tube is now the first in a series of attacks on both workers’ terms and conditions and the future of public transport in London. Drivers and all other workers should vote yes for action in both ballots.
The ballot starting 13 December will call for a determined campaign to get the yes vote and the turnout needed to secure a legal strike and a successful plan of action that can push the bosses back. At a rally in Westminster on 1 December representatives from the major unions across TfL all made promises about balloting, or using existing ballots, to take action and to defeat the government’s plans to slash services and introduced more privateers.
The rank and file in RMT and the other unions (Aslef, TSSA and Unite) will need to hold their reps and leaderships to account to get them to deliver on those promises.
Missing from the speakers was the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, who, despite decrying the Tories’ cut in government funding for TfL, has attacked the RMT action and continues to doom-monger about the possibility of closing lines rather than actually fighting for the restoration of the government grant. The Mayor has a simple choice: either back workers across the network, or cower as the government ramp up the cuts
As well as building the picket lines in the upcoming strikes, RMT drivers should continue to call for support from Aslef members, the majority of whom are doing the right thing and refusing to cross pickets.
Those drivers who are still on only Night Tube shifts are making a big financial sacrifice, losing almost their entire wage for the month.
Dispute fund:
• Donate online here
• Or send to Terence O’Neill. Sort code: 60-83-71. Account number: 89481380
