Grant Shapps has urged the top of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union to place Network Rail’s pay provide to staff for a vote as strike chaos continues.
In a letter to RMT common secretary Mick Lynch on Saturday afternoon, the Transport Secretary mentioned the railway operator’s proposal of an 8% pay rise over two years is “fair” and members ought to have the chance to resolve the dispute.
He additionally known as on the union to just accept proposed reforms to modernise the railway sector.
It comes as members of RMT, the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) and Unite walked out for twenty-four hours on Saturday, affecting Network Rail and a number of other practice firms throughout the nation.
The motion is the most recent in a sequence of walkouts over the previous couple of months amid a stalemate between unions and practice operators, which has brought on journey chaos throughout the UK.
Mr Lynch has rejected ideas that rail staff would conform to the provide on the desk if the union put it to a vote.
But Mr Shapps made a contemporary attraction on Saturday earlier than criticising the union for a way the economic motion is affecting the general public.
In his letter shared on Twitter, the Transport Secretary wrote: “Network Rail has tabled a fair, legitimate pay offer (8% over two years).
“It is only right that you now put that offer to your members and call off the strikes whilst you do so.”
Mr Shapps cited some TSSA members not too long ago voting in favour of the deal earlier than accusing different unions of pressurising different TSSA members into cancelling one other vote.
“It is in no one’s interest to take away members’ opportunity to resolve disputes,” he mentioned.
Mr Shapps described the union motion as a “kick in the teeth” to staff who can’t journey to their very own jobs.
He wrote: “Whilst the rise of home working has limited your ability to bring the country to a standstill, your action is disproportionately impacting those who have no option but to travel to work.
“Consider the hospital porter, cleaner and everyone else who needs to physically be at their place of work. Your action is often harming the least well paid the most.”
The Transport Secretary mentioned employers have a pay rise on the desk for RMT members but it surely won’t be put ahead till the union agrees to reforms that “will bring the railways off taxpayer-funded life support”.
He mentioned: “The longer the RMT continue to call further strikes whilst refusing to agree to these reforms and refusing to even put offers to its members, the more long-lasting damage is being done to the very sector from which your members draw their livelihoods, and on which key workers rely.”
The two sides are as far aside as ever in resolving the row regardless of months of talks.
Mr Lynch rejected Mr Shapps’ suggestion that RMT members would conform to the present provide if it was put to a vote, as he spoke to broadcasters on Saturday morning.
Asked on BBC Breakfast whether or not he had proof of this, Mr Lynch mentioned: “Absolutely, I did a meeting on Wednesday evening, the night before the strike of 14,000 RMT members, in an online rally and our members are out today demonstrating.
“I speak to thousands of our members every week, we consult at least 600 Network Rail reps on a weekly basis and we know exactly what the mood of our members is.”
Mr Lynch additionally claimed that members of the smaller TSSA union, who voted to just accept a pay deal, “have been bribed to break this strike”.
He mentioned: “Our members are not going to be bribed, the offer is puny and they’re not ready to accept it.”
Mr Lynch claimed public help for the dispute is “entrenching”.
“There are campaigns and rallies being launched right across the country in support of these type of activities,” he mentioned.
“I think the British public are fed up of being ripped off by this Government and by corporate Britain, which have seen companies like BP and British Gas making massive profits while people are struggling to make a living.
“The companies are being supported in this by the Government and we’re determined to get a square deal for our people and that’s exactly what we’ll achieve and the public seems to be right behind us in that campaign.”
Source: www.impartial.co.uk