Rail jobs, staff issues and training

Liverpool businesses call for end to RMT Merseyrail row ‘as a matter of urgency’

19.05.17: Businesses in Liverpool have called on the RMT and Merseyrail to return to negotiations and bring their long-running dispute to an end as “a matter of urgency”. The union has been locked in a dispute with the operator since the...

Upskilling our workforce: how we need to think

19.05.17: Simon Rennie (pictured centre), general manager of the National Training Academy for Rail, on the importance of upskilling the current workforce in addition to recruiting new entrants. Are railways still transformational? Really transformat...

Aslef piles more pressure on Southern with overtime ban for drivers

18.05.17: Disruption on Southern services are set to worsen as union Aslef announced its members would no longer work overtime on the operator’s services, until a resolution had been reached over the plans to introduce driver-only operation (DOO). ...

RMT confirms triple strike action to set up day of misery for passengers

17.05.17: Union RMT yesterday confirmed that its members will walk out in dispute with three operators across the country on Tuesday 30 May. Drivers and guards working on Southern, Arriva Rail North and Merseyrail services will strike for 24 hours th...

Southern and RMT return to negotiating table

15.05.17: Talks between Southern and RMT are set to resume today in the latest attempt to resolve the bitter and long-lasting dispute between the operator and the union, which has already resulted in 31 days’ worth of strikes. Both parties met...

HS2 contracts ‘not possible’ to win without improving diversity

12.05.17: Companies hoping to win contracts with HS2 have this week been warned that it will be impossible to do so without improving their organisation’s record for diversity and inclusion. The message was sent by Mark Lomas, head of equality...

RSSB develops new guidance to improve NTS of rail staff

05.05.17: New staff training guidance has been announced this week to boost the skills of railway workers to create a safer train network in the UK. The RSSB has stated that it is developing guidance that was launched in 2012 to improve the non-techn...

iRail 2017: inspiring the rail workers of the future

05.05.17: RTM’s Josh Mines reports from this year’s edition of iRail. In mid-March, 12 teams of teenagers from schools around Derbyshire came together for this year’s iRail event, held at Pride Park stadium, the home of Derby County...

RMT plans strike at London Bridge over staff assault incident

04.05.17: Union RMT yesterday announced strikes on the London Underground on 7 May as part of an escalation of its dispute with TfL over “London Bridge Three”. RMT threatened action last month after one member of staff was allegedly sacke...

RMT returns to picket line on Northern

28.04.17: Members of the RMT union have returned to the picket line today on Northern in protest at plans to introduce driver-only operated (DOO) trains, while changing the number and role of guards on-board the TOC’s new fleet. It follows talk...

Strike to go ahead on Northern as RMT talks break down

26.04.17: Discussions between Arriva Rail North and the RMT union have broken down once again, confirming that strike action will go ahead on Friday this week. The TOC expects to run around 40% of its normal service during the 24-hour industrial action. ...

Merseyrail prepares for more strike action as RMT talks fail again

25.04.17: Yet more strike action is expected to be announced on Merseyrail services as talks between the operator and the RMT union broke down yet again. The dispute over driver-only operated trains caused drivers and guards to walk out earlier in th...

Northern to run less than half its services during Friday’s RMT strike

24.04.17: Northern has announced its reduced timetable in preparation for industrial action that is set to go ahead this Friday, saying that 55 of its routes will be operating as normal or with a replacement bus service. The operator is expected to r...

RMT announces second Northern strike for April

19.04.17: RMT will once again strike against Arriva Rail North on 28 April after talks between the union and the operator broke down. Little progress was made when the two parties met last week, the RMT claims, as Arriva “dug its heels in&rdquo...

GTR boss earns almost £500,000 in 2016 despite terrible year for Southern

10.04.17: Southern rail boss and CEO of Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) Charles Horton was paid almost half a million pounds in 2016, despite over a year’s worth of commuter chaos caused by the ongoing industrial dispute with the unions over DOO and...