Posted 1st February 2014 | 1 Comment
RMT condemns TfL volunteer plan during strikes
THE Mayor of London Boris Johnson has reportedly agreed to have face to face talks with union leaders in the Underground ticket office dispute, but only if they call off the impending 48-hour strikes.
RMT general secretary Bob Crow had appealed for direct talks with the Mayor after claiming that discussions at ACAS had failed.
Meanwhile Transport for London said a new survey showed that more than four out of five Londoners support its plan to scrap ticket offices and employ more staff on platforms, but TfL's plan to use volunteer 'Ambassadors' if the strikes do go ahead has received a bleak reception from the unions.
TfL said the volunteers working at stations will all be trained and licensed, but Bob Crow said: "RMT is once again appalled that TfL are trying to fool the public into believing that volunteer 'ambassadors' can run a safe service as an alternative to experienced and highly-trained tube staff. That is dangerous and provocative nonsense with potentially lethal implications and the union will be alerting tube safety authorities of our serious concerns over this cavalier disregard for normal safety rules."
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James Palma, London
The use of trained staff who can work in stations during strikes is excellent. They should be commended for doing so. I spoke to one hard working individual who was obviously enjoying meeting people and helping them get from A to B safely.
I understood his normal job was to work in an office, for LU, to ensure the safe operation of the railway as a whole, and perhaps more safety critical than working on a station!
What I did find interesting was his comments on union attitudes to office staff, and that when restructuring has been undertaken in the past, there was neither hyde nor hair of the unions to stop redundancies or to limit effects!