TSSA members to vote on rail dispute offers

Thousands of TSSA members are to be given a vote on offers from the train companies in the long-running national dispute over pay, job security and conditions.

The union, which has been at the heart of industrial action on the railways since last summer, has received two formal offers in relation to all members employed by the train companies in the dispute.

For the first time these offers cover management and control staff, as well as stations and other grades within the rail industry. TSSA Reps across the country were consulted in an online ballot and voted overwhelmingly in favour of putting the offers out to members.

Of those who voted there was also agreement that there should be no formal recommendation from the union on whether to accept or reject the offers.

The timetable for the ballot will be decided in due course.

The offers come after several rounds of talks with the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) on behalf of the train operating companies and include -

An improved pay deal over two years, commitments for no compulsory redundancies until the end of 2024, improved opportunities for redeployment, as well as full consultation over proposed reforms to ticket offices and any changes to terms and conditions.

In December last year the RDG made an offer which failed to include Managers or Controllers at train companies. The new offers include all members in the scope of the dispute and affords redundancy protection for Control and Revenue staff.

The train companies involved in the scope of the new offer are - Avanti West Coast, C2C, Chiltern Railways, Cross Country, East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway, Greater Anglia, Great Western Railway, London North Eastern Railway, Northern Trains Limited, South Eastern Railway, South Western Railway, Trans Pennine Express, West Midlands Trains.

A TSSA spokesperson said: “Members involved in this long-running dispute will now have the chance to vote on whether what the train companies have come up with is enough to address their demands.

“We have fought for months on pay, job security and conditions in the face of a cost of living crisis and intransigence from government ministers.

“What is on the table now is a result of careful negotiations and the commitment of our members in their determination to demonstrate our collective industrial strength.

“Though the offers represent progress on a number of fronts we will continue to ballot for further industrial action as the dispute remains live.”

The offer on pay to TSSA from the train companies is a two year pay deal covering 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 which provides for a 5 per cent increase or a minimum increase of £1,750 whichever is the greater in year 1 and a further 4 per cent increase in year 2.

*No compulsory redundancies of employees within the grades directly affected by the Workforce Changes (see below) from the date of the agreement until 31st December 2024.

The grades directly affected by the workforce changes are: - All station-based grades, all on board grades including catering and train-crew, all administration grades, all Fleet & Engineering grades. All Revenue Protection and Train Service Controller grades will be regarded as in scope for the purposes of the no compulsory redundancies commitment.

*Voluntary Redundancy Scheme (VRS) – offering the terms set out under the RIRG Enabling Framework Agreement in 2021, to allow affected employees the opportunity to leave the industry should they wish to apply to do so.