PM urges more rail strike talks (BBC News)
 

Gordon Brown calls for more dialogue between Network Rail and unions to prevent the first national railways strike for 16 years.

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When you think about the wholesale transfer of shipping containers from road to rail recently then try and reverse it overnight! The week after Easter is going to be a bloody nightmare if these greedy buggers who have well paid jobs dont get off their butts and do some work.

This dispute has nothing to do with money but rail safety.
Management are trying to enforce changes which the rail unions consider jeopardises rail safety.

If the railways werent safe there would be more accidents.
I think the unions are trying to pull the wool over peoples eyes in an attempt to put the boot in to this Prime Minister at a key time. Strike while the iron is hot!

This strike has been "engineered" by the "bosses" as has the BEA dispute to happen at this time.:mad:
Make the unions look bad ( bad for the labour party) & it is hoped more people will vote Tory.
The time of the election has been known for some time & the Tory (dirty tricks) party's friends have been at it again.

I agree it's all one big game :mad: :mad:

ccmmick.

[QUOTE=klordger1900;44633]If the railways werent safe there would be more accidents.

THATS THE WHOLE POINT!!!!!!

At the moment the railways are as safe as we can possibly make them, you now take away 1500 maintance staff and that will create the unsafe system that the RMT are trying to prevent.

As a driver I do not want to drive over a sytem that is not aswell maintained as it is at the moment.

Its incidents like Grayrigg and Potters Bar that the unions are trying to prevent from happening again.

Les

[QUOTE=LesG;44644]I completely agree - this has little to do with money, except for the unfortunate 1500 victims of yet another big company doing its utmost to maximise its profits by reducing staffing levels. This sort of thing is exactly WHY there ARE unions; Thatcher did it's utmost to destroy the rights of workers, much as that might have seemed a great idea to many at the time, since there were a huge number of strikes back then. As a result, we've lost most of our UK manufacturers - ask yourself where all our trains come from...

:mad::mad:

Why would the Unions plan to strike at a time when people are more likely to vote Tory as a protest against the strikes. Isnt that counter-productive?
I think its a bloody shame that working people are allowed to affect the lives of millions of people (not just UK citizens - but anyone unfortunate enough to be here at the time) in this way. There should be a law against that for a start since the railways are seen as essential to a lot of businesses. This widespread hardship costs everyone concerned a lot of extra money which clearly means that someone else will profit from any strike, but its agro people just dont need. Anyway, there is no reason why we cant build trains here anymore - its just another assembly line which can be started with private/public funds wherever they like; Redcar for instance! Now there's a name and livery for a new train system if ever I heard one!!!

What i don't get is if 1500 people are made redundant, the employer will save some money. But don't those 1500 people then sign on and claim benefits or if they get another job keep someone else unemployed? Seems to me it's a waste of experience and training.
Richard