The
train
drivers’
union
ASLEF


has
announced
another
week-long
overtime
ban,
from
7
to
12
August.

It
will
be
the
fifth
time
that
ASLEF
has
staged
such
a
ban
since
the
first
between
15
to
20
May.
There
have
also
been
11
one
day
ASLEF
strikes
this
year.

The
union
said
its
negotiators
had
attended
talks
with
the
Rail
Industry
Recovery
Group
over
eight
days
earlier
this
year,
but
the
result
had
been
an
offer
of
4
per
cent
on
26
April
‘with
a
further
rise
dependent,
in
a
naked
land
grab,
on
drivers
giving
up
terms
and
conditions
for
which
we
have
fought
and
negotiated,
for
years’.

General
secretary
Mick
Whelan
said:
‘We
don’t
want
to
take
this
action
–
because
we
don’t
want
people
to
be
inconvenienced
–
but
the
train
companies,
and
the
government
which
stands
behind
them,
have
forced
us
into
this
place
because
they
refuse
to
sit
down
and
talk
to
us
and
have
not
made
a
fair
and
sensible
pay
offer
to
train
drivers
who
have
not
had
one
for
four
years
–
since
2019
–
while
prices
have
soared
in
that
time
by
more
than
12
per
cent.

‘We
haven’t
had
a
meeting,
or
a
phone
call,
a
text
message
or
an
email
for
three
months,
and
we
haven’t
sat
down
with
the
government
since
6
January.
That
shows
how
little
the
companies
and
the
government
care
about
passengers
and
staff.
They
are
happy
to
let
this
go
on
and
on.

‘But
we
are
determined
to
get
a
proper
increase
–
a
fair
pay
rise
–
for
men
and
women
who
haven’t
had
one
for
four
years
while
inflation
has
been
roaring
away.
Our
members,
perfectly
reasonably,
want
to
be
able
to
buy
now
what
they
could
buy
back
in
2019.’

The
withdrawal
of
non-contractual
overtime
will
apply
on
Avanti
West
Coast,
Chiltern
Railways,
CrossCountry,
East
Midlands
Railway,
Greater
Anglia,
Great
Western
Railway,
Govia
Thameslink
Railway
(including
Gatwick
Express,
Great
Northern
and
Southern),
LNER,
Northern,
Southeastern,
South
Western
Railway
(including
Island
Line),
TransPennine
Express
and
West
Midlands
Trains
(London
NorthWestern
and
West
Midlands
Railway)..

The
Rail
Delivery
Group
responded:
‘ASLEF’s
leadership
continues
to
disrupt
customers’
travel
plans.
They
rejected
a
fair
and
affordable
offer
without
putting
it
to
their
members,
which
would
take
average
driver
base
salaries
for
a
four-day
week
without
overtime
from
£60,000
to
nearly
£65,000
by
the
end
of
2023
pay
awards.

‘Train
companies
will
work
hard
to
minimise
the
impact
of
the
overtime
ban
that
will
affect
the
level
of
cancellations
and
the
punctuality
of
some
services.
Customers
are
advised
to
plan
their
journey
in
advance
and
check
the
latest
travel
information
before
they
travel.

‘We
ask
ASLEF
to
recognise
the
very
real
financial
challenge
the
industry
is
facing
and
work
with
us
to
deliver
a
better,
more
reliable
railway
with
a
strong
long-term
future.’