Strike ballots at rail operator – Trans Pennine Express (TPE)

Rail union TSSA has served notice to ballot dozens of members at Trans Pennine Express for strike action and action short of strike in a dispute over pay, conditions and job security.

The union is demanding a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies for 2022, no unagreed changes to terms and conditions, and a pay increase which reflects the rising cost of living.

Ballot opens - Wednesday 29th June 2022

Ballot closes - Wednesday 13th July 2022

The earliest that industrial action could be taken is 27 July 2022

These ballot follows hot on the heels of similar announcements in Network Rail, Cross Country, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Trains, and Avanti West Coast, Northern, LNER, C2C and Great Western Railway (GWR) in an escalating dispute across the railway.

Impact at Trans Pennine Express (TPE)

TPE runs train between the major cities and towns of Northern England and Scotland. The routes provide rail links to major towns and cities including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Sheffield, Hull, Leeds, Newcastle and York.

TSSA has TPE members at stations in Grimsby, Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester Middlesborough and York.

TSSA members are found in a number of roles, including Driver Managers, Duty Managers, Duty Station Managers as well as in Fleet Delivery, Station Team Leaders, Conductors, Customer Service Advisors and Incident Controllers.

TSSA General Secretary, Manuel Cortes, said: “Our members at Trans Pennine Express are seeking basic fair treatment in the teeth of a crippling cost of living crisis.

“Rail workers were hailed as heroes in the pandemic and now they deserve a real terms pay rise which keeps pace with inflation, rather than shouldering the burden of the Tories’ economic meltdown.

“Our demands are simple – pay which reflects the times we live in, a deal which delivers job security, and no race to the bottom on terms and conditions.

“It’s time the government changed course. Instead of making cuts across our railway the DfT should either give Trans Pennine and other companies the signal to make us a reasonable offer, or Ministers should come to the negotiating table and speak to us directly.

“The alternative is a fast-approaching summer of discontent across our rail network. Make no mistake, we are preparing for all options, including coordinated strike action which would bring trains to a halt."