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Rain strikes could last until the autumn, a union leader has warned, as the country prepares for the biggest industrial action in a generation this week.
Mick Lynch, secretary general of the Railway, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT), said the unions were not looking to compromise after negotiations with railway leaders could not move forward over the weekend.
A series of strikes on Network Rail and 13 train operators will continue on Tuesday, Thursday and next Saturday amid an ongoing dispute over wages and pensions. RMT and Unite workers will also take the London Underground on Tuesday.
Lynch told the newspaper and that the public may have to accept an interruption that extends beyond the summer, saying “there doesn’t seem to be much evidence at this point that it will go any other way.”
“The TSSA [union], which represents about 6,000 members of the Network Rail staff is voting, Aslef, who along with us organizes the machinists, has about six or seven ballots that are returned on July 11, just a few weeks away. If there is no agreement, I only see this escalation. “
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A union source told the Telegraph that the RMT had a “six-month strike mandate”, fueling fears that industrial action could last until Christmas.
The union can call a 15-day strike until the end of November, which is six months after the results of the vote were returned in late May, the newspaper reported.
Mick Lynch of the RMT
/ Fil PA
A Network Rail source told the newspaper that this week’s industrial action was “unlikely” to be a single one, and railway officials feared it could turn into a “battle of attrition”.
Earlier Sunday, Lynch said “people can’t do it anymore” while defending the strikes during an interview with Sky News.
Speaking to Sophy Ridge, Lynch said: “I think there will be a lot of unions voting across the country, because people can no longer stand it.
“We have people working full-time who have to receive state benefits and use food banks. That’s a national shame.”
Unions representing NHS teachers and workers have already threatened to take action if wage increases do not increase in line with inflation.
The RMT’s own strike will take place on June 21, 23 and 25.
In the midst of claims that the RMT is “provoking” industrial action by the Secretary of Transport, Lynch added: “We do not want to be the cause of the interruption of people’s lives. We want a solution to this dispute, but we are facing a crisis for our members.
“If we do not play hand in hand, thousands of my members will lose their jobs, rail services will be cut, the long-established security regime will be cut.
“We have to fight this.
“Because we haven’t had any pay rises, we’re facing thousands of job cuts and they want to break the terms and conditions in a form of fire and re-hire that it’s internal to the railroad. It’s as ruthless as P&O really is.
“We are available for negotiation.”
Shapps said the RMT had misbehaved during negotiations, but dismissed the government’s ability to start talks, calling it a “trick” on the part of the union.
He said: “I am afraid they are pulling over this strike and it will upset millions of Britons.
“It simply came to our notice then. There is no way to behave on the railroad. This has no advantage. I know Mick Lynch says he’s “nostalgic for union power,” but that’s not the way to go. “