Service Control Newsletter - Feb 2018

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 SERVICE CONTROL NEWS
February 2018
           Service Control News
     SERVICE CONTROL NEWS FOR RMT SERVICE CONTROL STAFF
      IN THIS ISSUE
   Equal Pay - PRP
This divisive system of discrimination must stop. Members no longer want PRP to manipulate members and demand Equal Pay for Equal work for all!
4LM – Hammersmith SCC
Members in SSR are putting up a strong unified fight to protect their conditions and secure a safe approach to transition, whilst demanding remuneration for more responsibility.
Attack on RMT Reps
LU continues to attack your right to Representation. Reps in the workplace are reducing with management changing job titles and release is persistently denied to Council Reps.
Update Your Details
It is of the upmost importance that you CONTACT RMT HQ NOW so any ballot for industrial action is upheld.
CALL: 0800 376 3706
Check all your details are correct
Every Job Matters
Changes to your current job role are under attack
On Monday 8th February 2018, our service control grades committee took place and was very well attended. Considering most of those who attended were members going to Hammersmith, this gave Reps absolute confidence on representing the issues at hand.
As Reps, we got an excellent understanding of concerns of members and the what “will and won’t” be accepted from the move to Hammersmith and changes Management are asking for!
Rep Numbers & Release for Representation
Release - Management have continued to oppose the release of the Functional Council Reps to undertake local level representation and negotiation with SCM’s.
This negatively impacts the ability of the union to represent member’s interests in the workplace and is deliberate to prevent local issues from being raised.
Rep Numbers - The Machinery is clear: 6 local Reps should be recognised. This was the case before Management started to bring In 2 Tier.
RMT will not stand for manipulation of the machinery to shed Rep numbers.
According to them, Managers do not get local representation. We refute SCL graded as “Managers” in this sense. We also have LIS’s to represent locally.
The Machinery also states that 2 Reps per Service Delivery Area are nominated and must meet with SCM’s 4 times a year at least.
The Company Council have agreed for a Directors meeting with RMT to hear our “concerns.”
SO1-3 Signalling Secondees
Since our last Newsletter: Recently your RMT Reps have successfully demanded that Secondees are given the contracts as per the 2012 agreement.
Around 20 Secondees have been given permanent contracts so far and more will follow.
This is despite management refusing initially to honour an ACAS agreement.
We continue to monitor this.

 SERVICE CONTROL NEWS | February 2018
2
 4LM HAMMERSMITH UPGRADE
The fight begins..
Our big success was the agreement to keep the 3-tier structure as opposed to the 2-tier structure that now exists on the other lines.
Training for Hammersmith should only be to learn the equipment! Failing CTBC for your current role will put at risk your place at Hammersmith. Thanks to hard negotiation, Protection is in place for this, if it should happen!
Non SCL1’s will be familiarised in the Signaller function but not to carry out that function in anger! This must be clearly understood.
Controller is a Controller only (SCL2). We have not agreed to cover up/down at all. 3-tier was agreed and 3-tier is how it will work as things stand!
It is very clear the SSR members are not going to do anything more than they are required. It is bad enough that 140+ staff have to be uprooted and then expected to Manage 40% of the railway in TFL’s FLAGSHIP CONTROL ROOM
The Service Control Grades Committee (on 8th February 2018) was a great success.
The room was packed out with members from all grades, with a good distribution from Controllers, Signallers, Service Managers - proving there is an appetite for a Service Control centred Grades Committee.
Although this was a meeting for all Service Control staff, as expected, the primary focus for discussion was the move to Hammersmith with the broader standing items such as Rep numbers, PRP etc being of secondary interest on this occasion.
Our issues with
Hammermsith..
After Reps reports, the floor was opened up to questions and views, which we subsequently condensed and captured below as the main issues.
1. Unanimous view that members will not tolerate ANY threat of being ‘moved’ if they refuse to do cross line working. As expected, this is a red line. So no forced moves out for ANY grade whom agrees to move to Hammersmith.
2. If no remuneration is available then our members will not be expected to do anything other than EXACTLY the same roles and responsibility as they do now with no detriment. No cross-role or line working either.
This applies for all grades!
3. Any attempt to introduce new responsibilities/roles MUST involve additional remuneration and be clearly defined.
Management have allegedly approached SCL2s already to see if they would be prepared to accept a supplement’ to settle – despite persistently say there is no money. The RMT don’t do “bungs”!
This is protecting members form extra responsibility, changes to their roles and safeguarding an Safer, easier, slower introduction for Signaller becoming Controllers. To expect a Signaller who operates a Cabin to then become a proficient Controller on 4 different lines is madness. They are being set up for a fall. What is the point of a few grand pay rise to a higher grade only to be overwhelmed and at risk of losing their job.
What we are proposing is a pay for contribution/experience model. This will allow TIME to develop and progress into a Controller fully fit to operate TFL’s flagship.
We are using to PRP model but one they actually pay out. To pay out upon “Time and Knowledge” achieved. This is why it’s affordable, THE MONEY HAS BEEN HELD BACK BY PRP, therefore they can right that wrong.
We are suggesting a level 1-4 graded development pay scale that falls with the banding of each grade as it is now. Then adding the percentage increase for a Hammersmith employee rate.
This is what you the members asked for and are prepared to FIGHT FOR!
It is a much safer model and remunerates fairly.
Change
Champions
Don’t get involved
Change Champions continue to be used to bypass the Machinery of Negotiation and consultation despite RMT vehemently opposing the role.
We advise staff not to engage with Change Champion programmes as we believe they harm the process of negotiating agreements and undermine your Reps. We have reason to believe, recent misinformation has been spread (and sometimes) using Change Champions to justify it.
Any information coming from HR and Management should be fed through elected TU Reps via agreed process.
 
SERVICE CONTROL NEWS | February 2018
3
  PRP
Equal Pay for Equal Work
PRP payments should have been made regularly (since 2006) in order to close the banding but payments were held back. According to sources, only 15% is made available by LU, from what should be 100%.
PRP is not suitable to our functions in Service Control.
PRP creates pay discrepancy. Equal Pay for Equal Work!
Service Control is traditionally a male environment. As more women join our grade, they will earn less than their male colleagues.
PRP is a manipulation tool, used by Management to dominate the individual.
PRP data is currently being reviewed by Directors. This is because your Reps have diligently fought to fight the unfair system of manipulation and non payments.
We are now considering which direction to go.
We have two options around gender equality of pay. We can approach Mayor Sadiq Khan and advice him that the “City Hall Directive” to employ more females in Service Control will increase the amount of females being paid less than men. This can’t be avoided because they will all be at the bottom of the band. We may simply give HR one more chance to rectify this injustice for all.
We can also use the Employment Tribunal to test a case in court.
DRM’s
Protecting our DRMs
At the Functional council we raised concern about DRM’s being used to carry out PGI’s.. PGI’s come under the auspices of the TOM’s and also are not the responsibility of Service Control staff.
The next step will be to refer this issue to Company Council if this practice persists.
Attendance Reviews
Rainbow Reports
Reps have challenged management that their members are being reviewed on historical sickness. These items are settled but the disciplinary process is being wrongly used under the Fitness for Work channel! These rainbow reports are usually 5 or 10 years sickness record and are generally during January and June.
The Return to work interview settles items of sickness and the review is designed to judge what action to take. Some Managers are abusing this (possibly) using document “G1391 A4 Managing Train Operator Attendance.”
If any member is asked to attend any meeting (formal or otherwise) please contact a Rep. DO NOT meet with any Manager without Rep advice.
Ongoing Actions
What we are currently working on for you.
- Provide all S/O Secondees permanent contracts. Plus anyone who has been working in cabins for over 2 years Ongoing!
- Clarify roles of DRM’s. Ongoing!
- Review PSCA to prevent SCM’s from blocking transfer and promotion. We have made some inroads into this and will feedback as and when we get more clarification!
- Improve transparency in the recruitment process. Simplify the promotional criteria and path for those who are already qualified in a role but have not yet been given a permanent contract. Ongoing!
- More transparency on movements with Reps. Improving and ongoing!
- To consider flexible working and job share for SC staff.
CHECK YOUR DETAILS
Urgent action for all members
To ensure any industrial action is upheld we need every member to double check their details are correctly registered with RMT Head Office. This includes your work location, grade, home address and all your contact details.
You will all be receiving a telephone call over the coming weeks from your Functional Reps, to ensure we have your correct details but we need you to update and check them first!
All service control members must call RMT HQ Now:
0800 376 3706 Ensure all your details are up to date.
RETURN YOUR BALLOT PAPER
The Trade Union Act
This malevolent and anti-democratic Act requires (amongst many things) a 50% turnout of those balloted and 40% of those balloted must vote in favour. For example, if 600 SC staff are balloted, 300 must vote.
If this doesn’t happen the ballot is dead! When (the minimum) 300 vote, 240 of those must vote in favour. This equates to an 80% Yes vote!
Every Rep, Member and Activist are urged to speak with their colleagues to ensure that those balloted return their ballot paper if there is action. The higher the return and higher the vote for positive action will provide the company with a clear indication that any issues that need to be negotiated and provide for positive outcomes for the membership.