Rail union threatens Christmas chaos in battle for higher pay

There will be “absolute havoc” on Scotland’s railways this Christmas with weekly walkouts, a union has threatened, unless its pay demands are met.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union are considering plans to strike each Friday and Saturday in the run up to December 25, including Christmas Eve, as it battles to win higher wages from newly nationalised ScotRail.

Mick Hogg, RMT’s regional organiser, said a resolution needed to be found in the dispute but warned “if no solution is found soon it’ll be absolute carnage, absolute carnage in Scotland’s railway”.

The union member said: “We don’t want the carnage. We do not want the havoc, but if a resolution is not found soon there will be absolute havoc.”

But the Scottish Government branded the potential festive walkouts “disappointing” and warned workers that “this will not lead to any increased pay offer”.

“If carried out, these strikes would potentially leave RMT members far worse off at a time when many will already feel the impacts of the costs crisis,” the government spokesman said.

Retailers are also fearing what could happen if the strikes go ahead.

“This latest bout of rail strikes is the last thing retailers need at what is the critical trading period of the year for many stores,” said David Lonsdale, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium.

“This further train disruption could deter shoppers and derail retail’s recovery and it is imperative both sides in the dispute get back round the negotiating table as soon as possible and thrash out a solution.”

Graham Simpson, the Scottish Conservative’s transport spokesman, blasted the unions threat, and claimed the RMT had been “holding the country to ransom for too long”.

“The RMT have already brought misery to thousands of Scottish rail passengers over the last few months, now they seem hell-bent on ruining the nation’s Christmas with their selfish action,” he said.

“Not only would these strikes impact passengers trying to visit loved ones over the Christmas season, they would deal a hammer blow to small businesses in the middle of crucial festive trading.

Mr Hogg told STV there was a meeting between the sides on Friday, and that he was hopeful there would be focus on finding a solution.

A revised pay offer was rejected by the union last week, which ScotRail said would have boosted wages for the lowest paid staff by 7.4%.

Mr Hogg said he wanted a “decent cost of living pay increase that actually reflects where the inflation rate is” for his members.

Rail workers are set to strike on November 5 and November 7 and 9 as part of the union’s campaign to win higher wages for its workers.

Members will walk out on November 19, impacting the travel of thousands of rugby fans travelling to watch Scotland face Argentina at Murrayfield.