London Underground Ltd

See the attached updated advice for dealing with Rainbow sickness processes.

Feb 2013-02-28

Update on Rainbow Sickness Process from Stations Functional Council Reps (SFC).

This update is overdue but we have been waiting for an agreed set of minutes from the last APC (Attendance, Performance & Conduct) meeting with management. The minutes are still in dispute but as the next meeting is not now scheduled until April and we are now getting more reports of the process kicking off again we are issuing this update to previous advice.

Triggers

The Bakerloo Branch agreed the following resolution for the attention of the RMT's General Grades Committee:

"The Bakerloo Branch notes the disgraceful treatment of our members, formally employed by Trainpeople, by London Underground. Despite assurances to our General Secretary and members of our Stations Functional Council, our members’ treatment in the LU recruitment process has been scandalous. We note that at least two thirds of our members have been unsuccessful in the recruitment process despite many of them doing the job for 5 years. We believe that LU has rigged and abused the recruitment process to deny our members direct employment. The fact that 32 of our 33 members are black or are ethnic suggests that racism is a central factor in their treatment.

The Bakerloo Branch agreed the following resolution for the attention of the RMT's General Grades Committee.

“This branch notes the appalling treatment of our young member and activist Brother Jayesh Patel at the hands of LU. Bro Patel was acting in the interests of safety when he requested ‘assisted despatch’ at two overcrowded stations on 1st of February 2013. This branch is amazed that as a result of carrying out these actions he was told to detrain and run out of service. Worse still he was instructed to attend a location away from his home depot to participate in a fact finding. Unfortunately the fact finding interview turned into a Gestapo interrogation where our member was denied the right to ask questions, denied the right to have physical break and denied to go home after his booking off time. Worse, this branch notes that since this time LU have added insult to injury and have stood down him down from that date.

We note the report from our Trains Council representatives, and note the following issues regarding
London Underground’s new S stock:

• the inadequate time allowance for the drivers’ train preparation
• cross-line working by C&H drivers on the Metropolitan line under the new timetable to be introduced in May
• the removal of train maintenance at Hammersmith depot and the impact of this on train movement
• the length of time between drivers being trained and actually driving the new trains
• the absence of Defective In Service Instructions (DISI) for the S stock

We note the correspondence from London Underground Ltd, and additionally the report from our representative and from our Regional Organiser.

We are appalled that LUL is attempting to circumvent our agreed machinery of negotiation through its ‘Engagement’ meetings. We believe that this will not encourage a more constructive working relationship and involvement as the company claims, but will reduce trust and remove important issues from our agreed, transparent and formal process.

We endorse the General Secretary’s instruction to our representatives not to attend these meetings.

Here is the latest edition of Morden & Oval branch news.

In the newsletter are stories including:

• How to: Official annual leave requests
• Level 1 process explained
• Young Member’s Resolution on a shadowing scheme
• STOP Boris! Save Clapham’s Fire Station
• and more

  Morden & Oval branch is also on Twitter here and on Facebook here.

A lot of the admin on London Underground are being asked to take notes at Company Disciplinary Interviews. We have been informed by the MATS reps that this is voluntary and in no way can you be made to do this. The company is looking for a team of forty five volunteers to take the minutes at CDIs.

The company want to reap the benefits of the Admin Grade Review which they dumped because they didn't want to financially reward staff for going above and beyond their role. Some people are being told by their Centurions that they have to take part in this fiasco, you
don’t!

TUBE UNION RMT confirmed today that tube drivers on the Jubilee Line, working out of the Stratford and Greenwich depots, are to be balloted for industrial action in a dispute over bullying of staff through the misuse of procedures and an appalling decline in the standard of working conditions.

In a letter to London Underground setting out the reasons for the dispute, RMT has highlighted:

• The unfair and disproportionate treatment of Drivers in disciplinaries
• Many facilities on the Jubilee line being in a very poor and in some cases a “disgusting” state
  

London Underground, Tubelines and Schweerbau GMBH have been fined £300,000 having plead guilty in court to endangering safety following the 2010 runaway train incident.

The incident occurred when a defective maintenance train was being towed. The trains became separated and the defective wagon rolled through seven stations of speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, coming within 600m of a passenger train. The quick response of control room staff prevented what judge Richard Hone told the court: “was the potential of terrible tragedy.”

Download or view the newsletter below

Mike Brown Confirms LU to attack Stations Jobs

On February 18th Our General Secretary Bob Crow met with Mike Brown to discuss the future of Jobs on the combine. LU are pressing ahead with plans to remove night-turn supervisors and gave no assurances about the grade of staff left to run the stations through the traffic day.

We must insist that 24 hour coverage of our stations by supervisors is maintained to guarantee’ safety and
that correct procedures are followed by companies in Engineering hours.