Tube drivers’ union votes for Boxing Day strike
Tube drivers vote to strike on Boxing Day while Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union plans protest outside City Hall.
Members of Aslef, the UK’s train drivers’ and operators’ union, voted nine to one in favour of industrial action on Boxing Day in a row over pay today (December 13).
It will mean disruption to the underground service, likely to affect football fans and Christmas shoppers.
The union is claiming triple pay and a day off in lieu for members working on December 26 and says London Underground is refusing to offer any extra pay.
Aslef general secretary Keith Norman said: “It is painfully obvious to any reasonable person that Boxing Day is not an ordinary working day and therefore it is no surprise that Aslef members have reacted in the way they have.”
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The vote was 1,025 in favour of striking, with 127 against.
A Transport for London spokesman said the union signed up to a long-standing agreement that states London Underground pay and conditions cover all bank holidays.
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He said: “It is disgraceful that Aslef should try to hold Londoners and London Underground to ransom in this way.”
Tube users have faced a series of strikes in recent weeks because of a separate dispute over jobs between London Underground and the RMT union and the Transport Salaried Staffs Association.
RMT members plan to protest outside City Hall on Wednesday over plans to cut ticket offices and station staffing.
The protest will coincide with Mayor Boris Johnson’s Question Time.