11.02.14
Tube strikes called off
Both unions have now called off strikes on the Underground, following a new agreement with TfL.
The TSSA tweeted: “Pleased that agreement on process lets us suspend #tubestrike immediately & cancel it later when agreement reaches us formally”.
And a statement on its website read: "We are in receipt of a letter from the Underground for which some of the details are confidential but we can say this the agreement gives us nearly 2 months to look at the proposals in great detail with a number of assurances on how these will progress.
"It includes a station by station review including ticket office closures, which could result in some ticket offices remaining open. The company have also agreed not to implement any further proposals on the subject of the Stations restructuring plans whilst these talks take place."
And RMT general secretary Bob Crow said: “After two days of intensive and detailed discussions through the offices of ACAS we have now received proposals that halt the implementation of the job cuts set out in the HR1 document which gives us the opportunity to discuss all of the issues away from the pressure cooker.
“We now have a golden opportunity to look again in detail at all of the concerns we have raised about the impact of the cuts on our members and the services that they provide to Londoners. That is exactly what we have been calling for throughout this dispute.
“RMT is happy to discuss any issues with LU through the machinery of negotiation and we are glad that we have now got back to where we should have been right at the start of this process.
“It is unfortunate that we were forced and provoked into a dispute that we never wanted and we are now in a position to move on with the clear understanding that our action is suspended but if there is any further attempt to impose change from above the action will go back on.”
LU managing director Mike Brown MVO said: “We welcome the suspension of the RMT and TSSA strike action. We have always said that we want the unions to engage fully with us, to help shape our proposals for the future of the Tube. The hard work of both the LU and union negotiating teams and the progress we have made at ACAS over the last few days means we can do that without further unnecessary disruption to Londoners.”
The second two-day strike was due to start tonight at 9pm. Unions were protesting TfL’s plans to close all ticket offices, which would risk 750 jobs.
John Woods, Deputy Chief Conciliator at Acas, said: "We welcome the news that the proposed industrial action has been withdrawn. We want to thank all the parties involved for their hard work and commitment over ten days of intensive talks with Acas."
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