One of RMT's equality reps emailed me a few questions for a course he is doing. I thought it might be worth sharing the questions and my replies with website readers.
1. What do you think are the key equality issues in the workplace?
Following an overwhelmimg yes vote for Industrial action and London Undergrounds refusal to invite the Equality and Human Rights Commission to investigate Managements discriminatory and abusive treatment of our members, a strike has been called as follows:
Members are not to book-on for any turns of duty that commence between 18.59 Hours on Wednesday 8th April and 18.58 Hours on Thursday 9th April 2009.
At the recent Tier 1 we had the opportunity to raise some issues with Bakerloo Line Managers. This is a brief outline of what discussions took place;
Route Proving.
Management seem to have got themselves into a bit of a 2 and 8 over this. They state Tier 2 reps have been consulted, and that validates their responsibilities to consult with us prior to new procedures being adopted. They then say Tier 1 reps were offered and declined consultation.
We at the Bakerloo Line have been subjected to ear splitting excess wheel screech for the past 4 months. Originally drivers were told to wear their ear defenders. These would be the ones SQE told us we don't need. The ones that are no longer part of our PPE. We have asked for a local investigation into the root cause of the problems. Surprisingly our PM turned this down!! It is now time to up the ante.
The derisory pay offer made by LUL is an insult. There is no more to be said really. LUL should return to the table with the real offer,I mean that last one was a joke right?
Who are they kidding? We have all been subjected to the forced rhetoric of our glorious, soon to be departing, MD. We are told at valuing time in a bunker near Holborn how wonderful we all our. How great our achievements have been over the past year. How we are in line for a £500 bonus because we deliver such brilliant and consistent customer satisfaction. Now all of a sudden, we are worth absolute nothing. A miserly ,insult of a pay offer. 5 years of no pay rises. For what? No improvement in conditions, pensions or anything.
Dear Colleagues
There has been a lot of news in recent days about the proposed 30% sell-off of Royal Mail to a private concern, the most notable forerunner being TNT. This is a company most notorious for it's strike breaking antics at Rupert Murdoch's Wapping plant in 1986.
TNT has a track record of cutting jobs to boost profits and works on the basis of 10 part-timers to one full-timer to cut costs.
In the last 9 months of 2008 the postal service made £225 million profit whilst TNT's profits have collapsed.
In these difficult times with the government intent on giving all our money to the next failed banker who turns up at 11 Downing Street with a begging bowl, it is hardly surprising that a publicly owned organisation like LUL will be looking to save a few quid. But how to go about trimming the fat? Maybe Tim O’Toole and his henchmen could take an axe to their lavish salaries? Perhaps LUL could manage without some of the tens of thousands of DSMs they employ to do nothing?
As a result of RMT reps harassment of management, we have been able to secure a local investigation into the disturbing events that took place on Saturday February 7 at Piccadilly Circus,which resulted in the absolute loss of confidence in the OPO monitors. This will enable us to drill down exactly the failings that occurred. We shall also be questioning the flagrant disregard of the procedure following an employees refusal to work under the grounds of Health & Safety.
This year, I will be attending RMT's AGM as a delegate, nominated by my branch, Stratford no.1.
Yesterday, the branch discussed resolutions to the AGM, and amongst others, passed this one. I wrote it following reflection on the recent oil refinery walkouts, but it is as much about the lessons we can all learn from those strikes as about the strikes themselves.
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DEFENDING OURSELVES FROM THE ECONOMIC CRISIS