Update following our directors meeting regarding the District Line dispute:

We are deeply concerned and disappointed by what the company have offered us in response to the shocking rise in workplace violence which has forced us to take industrial action.

What they have offered us is a strategic and tactical mistake, which won’t solve the problem - in fact it will make it worse.

LU’s response in brief:

They will continue working with their crime reduction team to tackle the worst affected areas (they should be doing this already)

Re- enforce message to staff about their right to work from a place of safety (they should be doing this already)

Infrastructure changes involving moving station control points at split level stations (they should be doing this already)

Ensuring the duty of care process is fully followed (they should be doing this already)

And most controversially they have said they will be deploying 20 TFL surface transport staff to be placed at the worst locations on the District Line. These will be non-operational staff, on far poorer terms and conditions than our members and although the company has said they will be there indefinitely they have also said they won’t be permanent.

This is a plan the company have had for quite some time and is a trojan horse that not only threatens to introduce more conflict into the workplace but is looking to replace operational staff by others on far poorer terms and conditions.

The dispute remains on and quite rightly so.