Strike action by train guards

Strike action by train guards

Guards from 12 rail companies voted in favour of strikes

Thousands of rail guards at some of the country's biggest train companies are to stage three 24-hour strikes in a dispute over their safety role, threatening huge disruption to services.

Members of the Rail Maritime and Transport union at 12 rail operators will walk out on March 28 and 31 and April 17 after talks aimed at resolving the row ended without agreement on Monday.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow said the train companies had been given a week's grace to reach a deal but had "walked away" from the chance of averting industrial action and accused the companies of having a "cavalier attitude" towards safety.

The row is over the safety role for guards on the trains.

'Onboard KitKat sellers'

The dispute first surfaced at the end of the 1990s when most train companies switched the responsibility for safety from guards to drivers.

The RMT said this reduced the role of guards to onboard "KitKat sellers".

Speaking after the talks broke down, Mr Crow said: "Eight companies have already signed up to restore the guard's proper safety role to the rulebook, and there is no earthly reason why the others should not do so.

"We can only assume that they intend to diminish further the role of the guard and to extend driver-only operation, and that is completely unacceptable."

The companies affected by the strikes are: Arriva Trains Merseyside, Central Trains, Connex South Eastern, Govia South Central, Midland Mainline, ScotRail, Silverlink, Thames Trains, Virgin West Coast, Virgin Cross Country, Wales and Borders and Wessex Trains.

The first two strikes are on the Friday and Monday of the last weekend in March, while the third walkout is on the day before Good Friday.

The union held talks with train company executives on Monday, but they failed to secure agreement.

Train operators have been training managers to stand in for guards in the event of a strike, but the action is still expected to cause widespread disruption to services.