Thousands of railway workers to walk out in row over pay, jobs and conditions
Passengers have been advised to check their travel arrangements because the strike action will see wide variations of services across the country.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Rail passengers will suffer fresh travel chaos on Saturday as thousands of workers strike in a long-running row over pay, jobs and conditions.
Services will be disrupted when members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, including station staff and train managers, walk out.
Passengers have been advised to check their travel arrangements because the strike action will see wide variations of services across the country, with trains due to start later and finish much earlier than usual.
In some areas only around half of train services will run, while others will have no services at all.
This will lead to disappointment, frustration and financial strain for tens of thousands of people
Services on some lines are also likely to be affected on Friday evening and Sunday morning.
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said the strike will disrupt the plans of families during the summer holidays.
They said: “This will lead to disappointment, frustration and financial strain for tens of thousands of people. We apologise for the inconvenience caused and understand the impact on individuals and businesses.
“Our advice is to check before you travel.”
There is not an agreement in sight at the moment but we remain available for negotiation with the companies and with the Government
Picket lines will be mounted outside railway stations across England and workers said they were receiving strong support for their action from the public.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said striking rail workers are still waiting for an invitation back to the negotiating table.
He said: “We’ve been on strike for over a year. This campaign’s probably been running for two years.
“The issues are the same. They’re attacking our jobs. They’re making redundancies. They’re closing services.
“We haven’t had a pay rise for four years and the people that remain, they want to cut our conditions and issue new contracts of employment.
The Government has met the rail unions, listened to them and facilitated improved offers on pay and reform
“There is not an agreement in sight at the moment but we remain available for negotiation with the companies and with the Government – but that’s up to them to invite us back to the table so that we can work up some solutions to the dispute.”
Members of drivers’ union Aslef will stop working overtime next month in a separate dispute over pay.
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “The Government has met the rail unions, listened to them and facilitated improved offers on pay and reform.
“The union leaders should put these fair and reasonable offers to their members so this dispute can be resolved.”