Management's Conspiracy Against Their Staff and Unions … in their own words

A Presentation document from LUL’s Performance Day earlier this year has been “uncovered” by RMT; detailing London Underground’s Maintenance Directorate Strategic Planning over the next few years.

*** Click '2 attachments' and the file names and you can download both management's document and these comments as a Word document.

LUL’s secret plans for all functions of LU Maintenance (former Metronet) contain the most offensive views of staff, and lay out a strategy of first making detailed management preparations, before intentionally drawing the unions into a manufactured dispute; leading them into a tactical strike with pre-arranged government support to defeat the tube unions (RMT!).

IT AMOUNTS TO A DECLARATION OF WAR ON LUL STAFF!

According to management YOU staff members are the problem:

  • You are an “Ageing and entrenched workforce” due to a low turn over of staff.
  • LUL are to address this by changing your thoughts and getting in new blood with new working methods.
  • LUL say upgrades requirements will provide opportunities to do this, along with “using other negotiations” to provide an opportunity to make changes.

LUL’s Key strategic priorities

Agreements made during Metronet’s existence with TU’s need to be got rid of.

Stakeholders need to take on antiquated working practices, bring in Maintenance Optimisation (work cuts) and staff number reductions. Cuts also to be made to fund the Olympics.

LUL says they “Need to plan for LARGE numbers of people to be put into re-deployment!”

Secret Management Strategy to attack staff & unions

LUL has admitted in writing that the “Recession helps, now is time to make changes”.

To start with, LUL is going to choose what is told to TUs in consultation - and what is not - to get as many changes to staff in by stealth as possible and as provocation!

This strategy is seen clearly where LUL’s document states:

“I do not think people understand the numbers we are talking, or at least it has not sunk in”.

LUL’s AIM to Break the Unions!

LUL is planning an attack on staff health & safety rights at work as well as provoking strikes through job cuts and forced redeployment. They have stated that staff having accidents at work may need to disciplined, and the right to refuse to work on the grounds of health & safety challenged by giving LUL safety managers more authority to say what is safe – and what is not!

Alongside pushing back your right to refuse to work unsafely, the document advises: “getting in a position to positively take on a strike”

Management state that they must ensure they have “political and commuter backing for what they’re setting out to do” - to stop political support being withdrawn when it’s needed. “We must plan for a strike and prepare people for it” LUL say.

A strategic combined plan led by Employee Relations and the Chief Operating Officers depts., is to be drawn up, supported by Communications dept who’ll ensure staff are kept “informed” long before the TU realise the need to ballot, and produce carefully aimed press articles long before the dispute starts, to ensure commuters will be on side too. Management stakeholders are to be prepared to ride out a strike, and to develop sufficient “bottle” to bring in new working practices and flexibility!

Finally they admit: “Maintenance can always be outsourced, and although the PPP structure has not been effective, there are ones that work ...”

PREPARE TO DEFEND YOUR JOB, CONDITIONS & SAFETY! JOIN THE RMT!