It's time to join the RMT Fines Pool. The Fines Pool, which is operated on a yearly basis, starts on 1st January and ends on 31st December every year. The cost of membership of the Fines Pool is one payment of £5.00 per year.

There are a number of ways to join. You can join by filling in a joining form and pay by cheque or cash to the Fines Pool collector, who is usually your branch secretary or hand it in or send it with a cheque made payable to the RMT Fines Pool to Unity House.

Photo by James Cridlan

TUBE UNION RMT today accused TfL and Tube Lines of slashing safety standards to dangerous levels as it emerged that twice weekly inspection of escalators will be cut to just once a week and the 12 week frequency of signal maintenance on the Jubilee Line will be cut to a 16 week cycle.

The latest safety and maintenance cuts on the Tube Lines section of the Underground have come just two weeks after RMT exposed moves to hack back the frequency of track inspections on the Jubilee Line extension.

RMT reps will be raising the issues at a meeting of the Health and Safety forum today – Thursday 3rd December – with a demand that the cuts be reversed as a matter of urgency.

The following resolution was carried unanimously at the Bakerloo Branch AGM:

"This Branch notes the summary dismissal of Bro Fitz Chambers on Tuesday 1st of December 2009 and is appalled at this gross unfair treatment of a long standing and respected member of staff with an exemplary record. This Branch believes that London Underground has an agenda of reducing staffing levels and has an agenda of getting rid of syndicates in train crew depots.

RMT is sending members on London Underground (including Metronet) a ballot paper for industrial action to achieve a better pay deal. Your union urges you to vote YES to strikes and YES to action short of strikes.

Voting YES to both will enable the union to use a variety of tactics - such as overtime bans or work-to-rule as well as strikes - to win a better deal than the pay-cutting ‘offer’ from management.