It is less than 48 hours since the government hailed a new deal with train drivers as proof that two years of rail strikes would soon be coming to an end. So it will be some embarrassment that Aslef, the rail union, today announced a further 22 days of strike action on the east coast mainline. Passengers travelling between London, Leeds, York and Edinburgh face months of disruption, with walkouts starting on 31 August and lasting until 10 November.
The announcement will undoubtedly cause a headache for ministers
Rather than pay, Aslef claims that ‘a breakdown in industrial relations, bullying by management and persistent breaking of agreements’ is behind the renewed strike campaign. This dispute, which centres around LNER services, is separate to the ongoing national strikes. Mick Whelan, the union’s general-secretary, accused LNER bosses of ‘boorish behaviour and bullying tactics’. He said: ‘The company has brutally, and repeatedly, broken diagramming and roster agreements, failed to adhere to the agreed bargaining machinery, and totally acted in bad faith.’
The announcement will undoubtedly cause a headache for ministers. Labour’s argument for settling the strikes with a 15 per cent pay hike over three years was that it would reset the relationship between government and public sector workers. Treasury minister Darren Jones said yesterday that the rail union agreement was: ‘A good deal for the taxpayer because we are preventing strikes from happening.’ The fact that further strikes have been called just a day later risks making a mockery of that argument.
It is not just political competence on the line here: there is the very real question of cost. The Department for Transport puts the current bill for industrial action since June 2022 at £850 million. The 18 days of strikes since then – combined with a refusal to work non-contractual overtime – have caused huge disruptions on the rest of the rail network. With junior doctors reportedly mulling further industrial action too, more strikes over the coming months risk jeopardising Labour’s claim to being the party best placed to handle the trade unions.