RMT Platform

Responding immediately to London Underground's job cuts announcement, RMT's National Executive (General Grades Committee) took the following decision at 15.30 today (11 March):

Transport for London has today finally admitted its plans for widespread de-staffing of London Underground stations, with the loss of 700-800 jobs. Today's press release, which you can read below, follows months of warnings from RMT about the company's intentions, and several leaks - which at the time, the company dismissed as 'scaremongering'.

TfL claims that its plans will create a 'safe, efficient and transformed Tube'. However:

• The Tube will not be 'safe' with hundreds fewer staff - it will leave passengers (and the remaining staff) vulnerable to accidents and assaults in understaffed stations, and unable to cope properly with serious, even life-threatening, incidents.
• The Tube will not be 'efficient', as without enough staff, it will not be able to provide the reliable and comfortable services that passengers want.
• The Tube will be 'transformed', but not in a good way! Rather, it will be 'transformed' into a barely-staffed system in which services become unreliable and passengers find it hard to find the help they need.

RMT is determined to fight these job cuts, as we know that they are potentially disastrous for station staff, for other grades of Underground and TfL staff, and for passengers. Everyone is welcome to be part of our campaign.

Make sure you regularly check our special 'SOS - Staff Our Stations' webpage for updates on developments and campaigning.

Your rep’s report of the main issues at the level one meeting between local reps and management on 17th February.
Read the report below, or click '1 attachment' / file name to download it as a PDF.

SRT covering SATS - again!
The SRT framework agreement states SRT should not cover any rostered duties unless the station falls below minimum numbers at short notice.

Navin Shah, Labour GLA member for Brent & Harrow, has tabled some questions to the Mayor about London Underground's plans to cut jobs and close ticket offices, and plans to table more. The questions (and an answer) are copied below.

New line-up for 2010

The Stations & Revenue (functional) Council has various Forums, Sub-Committees etc that deal with particular aspects affecting our grades. RMT has three representatives on each of these.

TUBE UNION RMT today revealed leaked details of an internal London Underground management report titled “Minimum Staffing Levels” which the union is warning would lead to the loss of hundreds of station jobs, hacking back to the absolute bare bones staffing levels agreed in the aftermath of the Kings Cro

The new issue of our 'RMT Platform' newsletter reveals London Underground's plans to reduce minimum staffing levels at stations - and even to keep Victoria station open with just two staff on duty! It sums up what we know so far about the company's preparations to cut jobs, and outlines what staff can do to stop these cuts. The newsletter also tells readers of the new protections won by RMT concerning mystery shoppers surveys.

Click '1 attachment' / file name to download it. Please distribute widely at work.

HOW LONDON UNDERGROUND PLANS TO CUT STATIONS JOBS

• Closing ticket offices and cutting opening hours.
• Reorganising station groups to reduce the number of reserves and admin staff.
• Threatening supervisor night turns (the company issued a bulletin in December 'reassuring' us that it is committed to staffing every station 'during the day') and therefore SS jobs.
  

Please find the attached February newsletter

I recieved this email and it just made me think of how little the bosses actually think of the customers. Couldnt really think of any tags for it to go under

LONDON UNDERGROUND’S biggest union has demanded an explanation from Tube bosses after a signal failure at Farringdon last night left passengers stranded without advice or help to finish their journeys.

Looking for a Transfer or Promotion, tough if LU get their way!

Staff have recently been informed by several managers that a freeze on nominations for SAMF positions was in place, but after the Functional reps raised this at the last Functional council meeting LU flatly refused that a freeze was in place and will confirmed this in a staff report scheduled to be published this week.

1. Mystery shoppers - report here

2. Complexity review - The complexity committee will visit High Barnet on 24 February, and Acton Town on a date yet to be finalised, with a view to uprating these stations and thus bringing about a pay rise for Supervisors.

RMT's success in protecting staff's rights was confirmed when yesterday's Stations & Revenue Council meeting endorsed the outcome of the S&D forum meeting about ‘mystery shopper’ surveys - details here. The company will now send out guidelines to managers (see below).

RMT Revenue Control rep Tony Rowntree recently emailed Network Rail protesting against the proposed loss of 1500 jobs on the mainline network as reported in RMT News. Below is Network Rail's reply, and below that are some comments from RMT head office countering that reply.

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Click '1 attachment' / file name to download and print RMT's leaflet explaining to the public our opposition to London Undergrond's new policy of a five pound minimum for Oyster top-ups at the ticket office window. Print it two-sided, then slice it into three!

Below is a copy of the joint collective grievance raised by SAMF's across the network and managements response.

Collective Grievance.

Click '1 attachment' / file name to download and print the 2010 'Contact RMT' poster for station and revenue staff. Local reps should write their name and contact details in the large green box, and make sure the poster is up in every union notice case at work!

1. RMT is London Undergrond's largest trade union - bigger than all the others put together. This gives us the clout to win for workers. And the more staff join up, the more clout we will have and the more we can win.

2. RMT is London Underground's only all-grades union - the only union that can represent you whatever grade your career takes you to - staying on stations, or moving on to revenue control, driver, admin, training, service control, engineering, or any other area.