Category: Metronet

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LUL Circular 29th January

AUTOMATIC TRAIN OPERATION TRAINING, SMA3, DISTRICT LINE – LONDON UNDERGROUND (LUL/11/2)
 
Further to my previous Circular (IR/007/1/21, 8th January 2021), the following resolution was received from Piccadilly & District West Branch:-
 
“This Branch notes that despite the RMT concerns over safety and preparedness, LU management decided to plough ahead with the operational proving weekend on the 9th and 10th January.
 
That weekend did not prove the railways readiness for automatic running or improved the readiness of the train operators for automatic running, it additionally saw numerous breaches of the covid guidance and regulations.
 
Despite this management plan to go “live” on the 6th March 2021!
 
It is unacceptable to our members, that training has not been agreed, that support has not been agreed, and as such, going live should be postponed until all train operators along with signalers and support technicians are fully trained and ready.
 
Our Regional Organiser has written to LU demanding that this project be postponed until such time all training can be carried out safely and to the standard of other similar line projects.
 
This Branch demands that written confirmation that the going live of SMA3 be delayed, in line with this resolution, (until all training and confidence trips are complete in the SMA3 area) if this is not received in a timely fashion, we call on the General Secretary to declare a dispute and ballot all affected members for strike action and action short of strike”.
 
This matter has been considered by the National Executive Committee, which has noted the resolution and is appalled that London Underground ignored the warnings given to them by RMT, our Officer and Reps and went ahead with an SMA3 proving weekend. This exercise was a farce with multiple serious health and safety breaches that our reps have raised with London Underground.
 
In addition to serious operational safety breaches the exercise caused many members to attend work unnecessarily during the Covid pandemic and many breaches of social distancing were observed. These too have been raised by our reps with management.
 
I previously wrote to LUL on 8th January to demand the postponement of non-essential proving work on the SMA3 project and in line with the NEC decision, I have now written to the Company again to advise that a dispute situation exists over its refusal to suspend the roll out of SMA3.
 
I have also arranged to meet with the Lead Officer and Reps, along with the SAGS and NEC regarding this issue and I will of course keep Branches advised of all further developments.
 
Yours sincerely
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London Underground Pay 2019

That we note the full and final offer from the company was discussed at an all LU Reps meeting last Thursday.
 
The unanimous view of the reps meeting was to reject the offer as aspects proposed by the company such as years 2 & 4 of the 4 year offer which are 1.4% respectively un-linked to RPI is an attempt by LU to offload the significant risk of hyperinflation following the Governments mis-handling of Brexit; onto our members.
 
Progress made by the Lead Officer and our Negotiations Team albeit a starting 1hr reduction off of the working week (35hrs to 34hrs) by the end of the 4 years; is a framework that is enabling the beginning of an unprecedented move from a 35hr week down to a 32hr 4 day week in line with our unions progressive policy to be further pursued.
 
Whist we will not let go of the progress made by our Negotiation’s Team on the Shorter Working Week; neither will we subject our members to the companies plan to put them at risk of a potential significant pay cut.
 
This union does not gamble with our members livelihoods!
 
Without question the only feasible way to provide a resolution to this dispute is for the London Mayor to fund a substantially improved new offer which necessitates him putting more new money on the negotiations table.
 
Other aspects of our original pay claim not addressed in the company’s offer such as the removal of the CSA2 by upgrading to CSA1 were also raised.
 
Accordingly; we instruct the General Secretary to provide all assistance in preparing a ballot matrix for a ballot of the entirety of our London Underground membership for a ballot for Industrial Action; which is to be completed with a target for the strike ballot ready to go by the end of November.
 
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LUL announce ERU and FRC Christmas Period Payment

The RMT has always demanded equality across all areas and staff working on LUL worksites.

 

Whilst we welcome the below payments, we also believe that all workers deserve to be rewarded for working during certain periods such as Christmas and we are therefore approaching the company to obtain commitments for all other areas and staff to working during the same period

 

LUL Bulletin

 

Asset Operations, ERU and FRC

Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve working arrangements 2019
Christmas Day working arrangements 2019

  • 1. Employees whose shifts start on or after 22:00 hours on Christmas Eve will
    receive an additional £285 payment for each shift worked on Christmas Day. For example if an employee works two shifts, i.e. 22:00 hours on Christmas Eve and then again at 22:00 hours on Christmas Day, they will receive an additional £570 payment (2x £285).
  • 2. Employees booking on duty before 22:00 hours on Christmas Eve will also
    receive the additional £285 payment provided that they work the majority of their shift after 22:00 hours on that night.
  • 3. Employees booking on duty before 08:00 hours on Boxing Day will also receive the £285 payment for that shift.
  • 4. Employees who are required to be on call during this period but are not called out will receive an additional payment of £50 per shift in accordance with the dates and times specified above. If called out then the additional £285 payment will apply.
  • 5. These are gross payments and are subject to tax and national insurance
    deductions.
    New Year’s Eve working arrangements 2019
    1. An employee working any rostered night shift will receive an additional £228 over and above normal pay.
  • 2. Licensed volunteers working a night shift will receive an additional £228 over and above normal pay.
  • 3. Any employee working on New Year’s Eve, whose shift finishes after 22:00
    hours, will receive their normal rate of pay plus £228. This payment will not be made to employees in categories 1 and 2.
  • 4. Employees booking on duty before 08:00 hours on New Year’s Day will also
    receive the £228 payment for that shift.
  • 5. Employees who are required to be on call during this period but are not called out will receive an additional payment of £50 per shift in accordance with the dates and times specified above. If called out then the additional £228 payment will apply.
  • 6. These are gross payments and are subject to tax and national insurance
    deductions
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Point Care Gang (LUL)

Despite LUL being informed of serious breaches of agreements with regards to BCV and SSL, management continue to use the JNP Gangs on non-JNP areas.

 

The man concerns of this are:

  1. The JNP Point Care Team includes dual skilling track and signals staff that we believe is a direct threat to job security
  2. There has been no discussions to vary any BCV and SSL agreements.
  3. Impacts on existing staff in the SSL gang have included being placed into the redeployment pool, alienated so that the have wanted to move and we believe there is now a complete breakdown in Industrial Relations over the matter

Sadly, it seems that we have been given no choice but to look to our members to defend our agreements and our job security. We are therefore compiling a ballot matrix of all BCV and SSL Signal Staff with a view to Industrial Action.

 

We remain available for talks.

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LUL Point Care Gang

It has come to the attention of the RMT that JNP Managers have been looking to export former Tube Lines working methods into BCV and SSL areas.

 

One such example is the Point Care Gang. The RMT supported this initiative within BCV and SSL as a way of recruiting staff and given members a career opportunity.

 

However we now find that there has been a steady creap of JNP (former Tube Lines) working practices that involve the blurring of lines between signals and track staff roles. This is directly against BCV/ SSL Agreements and will not be accepted

 

To that end we have asked our National Executive to Ballot all our members in Signals in Former Metronet areas

 

We remain available for talks

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Fighting the latest Transformation LUL

LUL have been forcing through large job cuts in Asset Operations and other areas that also include the Track Access Controllers and Learning and Skills development.

 

Additionally, we are also seeing a large scale attempt to privatise part of the work that is currently done by DSM at Acton and this is not acceptable to your union.

 

Despite requests to go to Acas and to follow our Agreements, LUL have refused to cooperate with the RMT.

 

These Agreements were made prior to the failed Privatisation of Tube Maintenance to Metronet and Tube Lines and enshrined how we negotiate any changes such as these and how we prove the proposals are Safe.

 

Not content with this attack on our ‘jobs for life deal’, LUL are now attacking our Roster Agreements for Metronet and Tube Lines, see below

 

CMO Roster Agreement Click Here

 

 

Tube Lines roster agreement Click here

 

We have demanded LUL stop these attacks and get round the table with your union in the agreed fashion and we have asked our NEC to ballot all of Tube Lines and LUL Signals for strike action and action short of strike.

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PAY, TERMS & CONDITIONS – PROTECTION STAFF MORSON & CLESHAR (LU CONTRACTS)

PAY, TERMS & CONDITIONS – PROTECTION STAFF

MORSON & CLESHAR (LU CONTRACTS)

 

Further to previous correspondence regarding the above, this matter has been considered by the National Executive Committee, which has taken the following decision:-

 

“That we note the report from our Lead Officer and that our members having waited 6 months for the union to address this issue and are beginning to lose faith.

Accordingly we instruct the General Secretary to prepare a ballot matrix of all affected members employed by Morsons, Cleshar, JMK and Rift for industrial action in the form of a strike, and concurrently over a 4 week balloting period conduct a referendum of our self-employed members with a recommendation to withdraw their services from London Underground’s business.

We also instruct the General Secretary to obtain legal advice to facilitate protecting our members, and to arrange a meeting between our IR Representatives, the Lead Officer, Senior Assistant General Secretary and members of the NEC.

Members to be advised by e-mail and text.

Bob Crow Branch and the London Transport Regional Council to be advised”.

 

As a result of the above decision, all affected companies have been informed that we are in dispute and Papers to be dispatched on Tuesday 4th June with a closing date of Tuesday 2nd July.

 

The referendum of self employed members to run concurrently

 

Yours sincerely

Mick Cash

General Secretary

 

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Breakdown in Industrial Relations: LUL Signals

It has been brought to our attention that numerous changes have been occurring across LUL Signals, with minimum or no discussion. These have in some cases been minor and in others completely break agreements and working practices that we have had for in some cases decades.

 

The final straw has been the Point Care Gang, the RMT have been supportive of this team and had reached agreement with management over their use, skill set and work location. This now appears to have been ignored and we will not allow our agreements to be destroyed. These include:

  1. Use of Signal Staff to not do track work
  2. Use of Track Staff to not do Signal Work
  3. Home depot
  4. Work remit and area

This alone would be enough but we have also seen unilateral changes to IRSE Licences that people hold, higher grade working use, level transfers being interfered with and enough is enough.

 

We have demanded that LUL abide by our agreements and reinstae the status quo by Friday 17th May, or else we will be in dispute on LUL BCV/ SSL Signals.

 

We remain available for talks

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LUL Transformation: Why it matters to us all

LUL have announced a new wave of job losses as our mayor implements both the government austerity measures, along side his own cuts agenda.

 

However, these cuts are now starting to occur within operational areas and also include areas that have already been cut before, for example:

 

Asset Performance Control Centre (APCC) and Duty Operation Manager Engineering (DOM(e)) was reorganised less than 2 years ago. That reorganisation in the APCC and DOM(E) area saw over a 17% cut in staff and that lead to increased pressures and workload for the remaining staff. Despite assurances that to the contrary, we now find that they are being attacked again. It is obviously that if you give so much as an inch then the company will take a mile. The DOM(E) and their counterparts on JNP, will go from 20 staff to 7 staff, again being unworkable and will effect the lives of those left in these roles

 

In the Fault Report Centers, LUL want to lower the number of operators on both from 50 staff to 28 operators and 7 team leaders despite the fact that staff there are struggling with their current workload. The RMT do not accept that this is safe and we believe will effect our members health and well-being and workload balance.

 

And no surprise bu tno senior manager is losing their job!

 

It is obvious that the company want us to pay for their cuts with our jobs and we say NO!

 

Breach of agreements

 

RMT have taken the serious decision to refuse to enter into talks and have entered into dispute instead. This is because LUL are refusing to acknowledge the processes and agreements that you Union negotiated for us all to protect us and protect our jobs.

 

Jobs for life deal.

 

The below agreement was reached with LUL prior to privatisation of the Engineering Functions and is contractual. They cannot make anyone compulsory redundant and have to show, very importantly, that a job loss is SAFE. There is no point in talks if they refuse to follow these agreements and insist on sham talks without FULL and THOROUGH discussions with our health and safety reps prior to any further discussions. That does not mean us going cap in hand to LUL and saying this is wrong, but working together to identify all the risks and making sure it is correct. We fail to understand why LUL are refusing to cooperate with us on this matter unless they intend to to force these changes through.

 

Jobs for Life Deal click here>>

 

If it is not safe, then there is nothing to accept.

 

Negotiation and NOT consultation.

 

The below agreement is also contractual and LUL are refusing to acknowledge and follow its principles for these talks. This is the precedent that will be used to beat us ALL up with and is not acceptable.

 

Negotiation means we talk, we agree and we work together. Consultation means they told us now off we go like good little children. We will defend our agreements and we will not accept them telling us anything especially when it comes to people’s livelihoods.

 

Code of Practice PPP click here>>

 

 

LUL need to come to the table and start talking seriously with your union and honour our agreements and we intend to ballot our members to ensure this occurs

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LUL TRANSFORMATION

TFL/LUL TRANSFORMATION

 

Further to my letter of 15th April 2019 you will know that TfL/LUL is undergoing a process called ‘Transformation’ which aims to cut costs and make savings by making job cuts. LUL has recently announced a further raft of job losses affecting members in Track Access Control, Power Control, Service Control, LUCC, Skills Development, Waste, Pumps, Stations Buildings & Civils and Signals Incidents.

 

RMT is of course opposed to the whole Transformation process and I immediately wrote to the Company to demand that section 6.1.1. of the Main Framework Agreement is adhered to. This states that any changes in relation to staffing levels will only be carried out following full consultation and negotiation with the trades unions. This has not been the case so far as no negotiation has taken place and no safety review or validation has been provided.

 

The Company were informed that we are in dispute over its failure to follow the correct procedures and failure to adhere to our agreements while pushing ahead with job losses affecting RMT members. All RMT Reps were also been advised not to attend or take part in any briefings or discussions regarding this matter until further notice.

 

We have now had sight of an LU Skills Development Change Update Bulletin sent to staff where appallingly the company has gone ahead and opened up a Voluntary Severance Scheme despite our request for proper negotiations and in the full knowledge that a dispute situation exists between us. We have demanded that this notice is withdrawn immediately and that this completely unacceptable trawl for Voluntary redundancies is stopped. We will not tolerate management riding roughshod over our agreements and trying to bulldoze through such a major transformation, which will have a devastating effect on jobs, without proper consultation and negotiation with RMT.

 

I will of course keep you updated with all further developments.

 

Yours sincerely,

Mick Cash
General Secretary

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RMT declares a further dispute across London Underground over threatened job losses

RMT declares a further dispute across London Underground over threatened job losses
 
TUBE UNION RMT confirmed today that it has declared a further dispute across London Underground over job losses and is preparing a ballot for industrial action.  The dispute comes in addition to the rows over the current pay round and fleet preparation and maintenance with RMT making it clear that it sees the attacks on jobs, staffing levels, pay and working conditions as part of a concerted assault on the workforce by London Underground that it intends to resist with every tool at its disposal including the use of industrial action.
 
The latest dispute has arisen as TfL/LUL is undergoing a process called ‘Transformation’ which aims to cut costs and make savings through job cuts. LUL has recently announced a further raft of job losses affecting members in Track Access Control, Power Control, Service Control, LUCC, Skills Development, Waste, Pumps, Stations Buildings & Civils and Signals Incidents.
 
RMT has made it crystal clear that the union is wholly opposed to the whole Transformation process and has written  to the Company demanding that the negotiated Main Framework Agreement is adhered to. That agreement states that any changes in relation to staffing levels will only be carried out following full consultation and negotiation with the trades unions. This has been flouted in respect of the latest proposals as no negotiation has taken place and no safety review or validation has been provided.
 
Due to this breach of the key main agreement principles RMT General Secretary Mick Cash has made it clear to the Company that unless the union receives the relevant information, including the full proposals and full information on all safety aspects, we will withdraw from the 90 day statutory consultation.
 
RMT’s National Executive Committee has now considered the matter again and noted that the wholly inadequate Company response does not address our requirements. Therefore, the NEC has taken the decision to advise the Company of our withdrawal from the flawed Transformation process and to declare a dispute over this issue. RMT has now advised the Company accordingly that we are in dispute over its failure to follow the correct procedures and failure to adhere to our agreements while pushing ahead with job losses affecting RMT members.
 
All RMT Reps have also been advised not to attend or take part in any briefings or discussions regarding this matter until further notice and preparations for a ballot are now underway.
 
RMT General Secretary, Mick Cash said:
“RMT members across London Underground are furious at what they rightly see as a barrage of attacks from the company with the job cuts assault under the guise of the “Transformation” process just the latest in a catalogue of grievances that are all about hammering down on pay, staffing levels, safety and working conditions.
“RMT has made it crystal clear that we will fight any attempts to rip up agreements as part of a process designed to ram through cash-led cuts that would decimate the workforce and open the door to an assault on job security, pay and working conditions that our members have had to fight long and hard to achieve
“We are now in dispute with London Underground on a number of fronts and are mobilising an industrial and political response that will turn the tide on these ill-conceived attacks.”
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LUEngineering Branch Resolution to NEC

Resolution to NEC ref Transformation:

 

“This branch condemns the cuts being carried out across LUL and TFL.

We note that LUL are now informing staff that they are intent on ignoring our jobs for life deal (Annex H, PPP Code of Best Practice) and have stated that people may be made compulsory redundant.

 

We also note that the TfL and LUL bahaviours in these discussions have fallen short of the expectations that our union has on how these matters will be negotiated. We believe that the companies have failed people on Maternity Leave or with Mental Health, among many other factors and have driven change through that will not work and will make life miserable for many that remain.

 

We also note the feedback of our members that attended the Mass Meeting on Transformation on the 8th May and unanimously decided to fight these cuts. We therefore ask the National Executive Committee to:

 

  1. Ballot all Engineering Members in TfL in the PMO and Engineering for strike action and action short of strike.
  2. Ballot all members in LUL affected by Transformation for strike action and action short of strike
  3. Ballot all Members in LUL Asset Operations for Strike Action and Action Short of Strike.
  4. The General Secretary meets with the Mayor and asks him to condemn the cuts and put a halt to transformation.

That general legal advice on the contractual nature of the PPP Code of Best Practice and particularly Annex H, is distributed to our affected branches.”

 

Code of practice PPP

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