20th August 2024

Dear RMT Member

RATES OF PAY & CONDITIONS OF SERVICE 2024 - LONDON UNDERGROUND

RMT submitted our pay claim to LUL in April and it included demands for an RPI+ increase on basic pay to compensate for a real-terms decrease in pay in 2022/23; all members covered by collective bargaining to receive any negotiated award irrespective of business rules or position in a pay band; pay bands to increase in line with any award; the bottom of pay bands to increase faster than the general award as a step towards spot pay rates; an underpin to secure a bigger percentage increase for the lower paid; reduction in the working work in line with RMT policy, that is a 32hr 4-day week; build on commitment to restore Priv for all by equalizing all travel facilities. All service in an Infraco or other entity since absorbed into TfL/LUL to count towards service for the assessment of retired travel facilities; LUL POE to transfer to TfL under any redeployment of staff from LUL to TfL; bring outsourced members in-house.

Talks took place with the Company and in July, I wrote to LUL to reiterate that any acceptable pay offer must be paid in full and as consolidated salary to every member in the collective bargaining unit. I also advised LUL that a failure to make such an offer would lead to a dispute situation. A mass meeting of LUL and TfL members took place on Wednesday 7th August which was also completely united in a position that any offer would only be acceptable if it is consolidated for all irrespective of imposed pay bands or business rules. No acceptable offer was received from LUL and your RMT Lead Officer and negotiating team recommended that the Union now proceed to a ballot of all LUL and TfL members.

Throughout the discussions, LUL's offer has made an explicit proposal that pay bands and other elements of pay management will not form part of collective bargaining between us going forwards. Pay management affects the contractual pay of you and your colleagues and imposed pay bands are being used by the employer to exclude some members from the negotiated pay rise.

The latest offer received from LUL is a 3.8% increase, which is equivalent to the level of CPI(H) inflation in February and March of this year and 1% above the level of inflation as it stands today. This is underpinned with all employees earning an FTE salary of £40,000 or below receiving a consolidated increase of £1,520. The offer applies to employees of London Underground covered by the relevant pay frameworks (General Increase and Performance Related Pay). Eligibility criteria for base pay increases are set out in the business rules for these frameworks.

Salary bands and pay ranges are not in scope of the negotiations and they will not automatically move in line with any pay award. However, LUL does intend, at its discretion, to review pay ranges where application of the pay award will cause acute pay compression issues and /or where it would be beneficial for the organisation to create some headroom at the top of the range. For members who would not receive a consolidated pay increase, because their salary has reached the top of or already exceeds the top of the pay range, this will be paid as a fully or partially non-consolidated lump sum.

The National Executive Committee has considered this matter and is disappointed that the Company has failed to address the issue of pay bands for our members and is using CPI to calculate increases. The NEC has therefore taken the decision to commence a ballot of all LUL members for strike action and action short of a strike in the form of an overtime and rest day working ban; not to familiarize staff who do not usually work at a location; no training of staff for roles that are outside of their normal substantive role; no undertaking of training that is outside of a member's normal substantive role.

I am now making the necessary preparations to conduct this ballot and will advise you of the balloting timeline shortly. In the meantime, please ensure your details; workplace, job title and home address are correct on our records. If any of your details have changed please update them using e-Membership at www.rmt.org.uk, e-mail info@rmt.org.uk or call the Freephone helpline on 0800 376 3706.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Lynch
General Secretary