LUL Trains

LU management have produced a document which waters down safety checks for trains. Your reps believe that this is a disaster waiting to happen. The document states that during special circumstances, special timetable operation, abnormal service patterns, failure of trip-cock testers, there is no requirement to test trip-cocks every trip. Every 48 hours or so seems good enough for LU.

As far as RMT is concerned, trip-cocks must be tested every trip regardless of other circumstances.

Some good news for a change! Over the past 6 months the Trains Safety Council have been reporting on LU’s proposal to introduce a series of safety critical changes to the role of driver, the Operational Effectiveness Programme. These have included: reversing 'blind' back into a platforms after an over-run, drivers self-dispatching at category ‘A’ platforms with defective OPO, checking signal aspect after SPAD and carrying on etc.

The attaced document is an open letter to our ASLEF collegues on the Bakerloo Line.

Click on the link to download the latest edition of RMT Up front.

The lead article follows:

Time to join the picket lines!

After months of talks, talks and more talks we have finally arrived at the point where our union is asking us to take industrial action in defence of jobs. This is not something that is asked lightly; but with a mandate for strike action from RMT members it is a question which can no longer be avoided and to which the answer must be emphatically in the affirmative!

Hot on the heels of the ASLEF/LUL 2009 Agreement which saw driver numbers slashed with spare turns and pool staff decimated comes the next round of attacks on the grade.

London Underground are now axing even more drivers when the next timetable changes are introduced across the combine.

Finsbury Park branch has written an open letter to all ASLEF members working at Arnos Grove and Seven Sisters depots explaining the reasons for the RMT strike ballot and asking them to support any action which we may take in defence of jobs, health and safety, and working conditions. It is a call for shopfloor unity and solidarity at a time when it is desperately needed if we are to successfully defeat LUL's savage cost-cutting plans. Click on the attachment to download a copy.

DISMISSAL- K.MORTELL, TRAIN OPERATOR, WHITE CITY, (LUL/4/1)

Dear Colleague

I regret to advise you that the ballot to reinstate Brother Mortell must be rerun due to an administrative error With the Anti Trade Union laws being so incredibly restrictive we cannot risk the company challenging the previous ballot and declaring any industrial action called from it illegal. Therefore the safest course of action is to re run the ballot and I offer my sincere apologies to for this error.

Read the ten reasons below. Click '1 attachment' / file name to download a special issue of 'RMT London Calling' for London Underground drivers.

1. Because management want to take risks with our safety by cutting jobs to save money. They are trying to change our procedures so we have to deal with incidents alone, without help from station staff. This will leave us vulnerable both to accidents and assaults, and to disciplinary action if anything goes wrong.