Third day of British railway workers’ strike, biggest in 30 years

Third day of British railway workers’ strike, biggest in 30 years

British railway workers strike the third day of the week on the Saturday after Tuesday and Thursday, in a dispute over employment and wages, in a state of record inflation for 40 years that has been hitting the United Kingdom. According to traffic forecasts, only one out of five trains should run and half the lines will remain closed. It is limited to the time slot of 7:30 am to 6:30 pm. There is a possibility of disruption on Sunday as well.

The RMT union, which has called for a strike, is demanding a wage hike in line with inflation, but also condemns “thousands of layoffs” and the possibility of worsening working conditions. Mike Lynch, the organization’s general secretary, warned of the movement, saying, “In a modern economy, workers should be fairly rewarded for their work, with good conditions, and given the peace of mind not to lose their jobs.” ” Can spread in the absence of consent.

Boris Johnson’s government aggressive against the strike

From Kigali, where he was attending the Commonwealth summit, Prime Minister Boris Johnson speculated on Sky News that the British “have a right to expect basic reforms”, especially “in the face of practices that union leaders do.” nobody defends except”.. His government this week announced its intention to change the law to allow the use of temporary workers to replace striking workers and reduce the “proportionate” impact of strikes. can be reduced. For his part, Transportation Minister Grant Shapps accused RMT of “harming the lives of people working hard every day” on Twitter, while the strike is the biggest strike in the sector for 30 years.

This week’s strike has caused an estimated £150m (€174m) in damage to the region. Faced with a cost of living crisis, discontent is mounting and strikes are planned for British Airways ground staff, some lawyers, and also for teachers, postal workers or health workers at London’s Heathrow airport this summer.

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