In June 2009, a 48-hour strike disrupted the London Underground, the underground rail system that serves the United Kingdom’s capital city. The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers called the strike after pay talks between the trade union and London Underground broke down. The protest was condemned by employer groups, passengers and the UK government. The transport sector is characterised by high rates of industrial action.
Background
Negotiations on the terms and conditions of employment for those working in London Underground took place throughout April and May 2009. The talks were held between Transport for London (TfL), the public body responsible for operating the underground rail system that serves the United Kingdom’s capital city, and the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT). The negotiations took place against the backdrop of cuts in public spending on the London Underground and the possibility of job losses within the service.
During the talks, RMT was demanding a 5% pay increase for its members and a guarantee that no compulsory redundancies would be implemented. TfL offered RMT a five-year package that would provide the trade union’s members with pay levels that kept pace with inflation and an additional modest pay increase. RMT characterised TfL’s offer as amounting to a pay freeze, while TfL claimed that RMT’s demands were unrealistic given the current difficult economic climate.
Towards the end of May 2009, RMT balloted its members on the possibility of strike action. The results of the ballot confirmed support for a strike, and RMT announced that the strike would take place between 18.59 on Tuesday 9 June and 18.58 on Thursday 11 June 2009. Despite several attempts at eleventh hour talks between the parties to reach an agreement and to thus avert industrial action, the strike went ahead as originally planned by RMT.
Effects of strike
The action affected London and its transport system rather severely. Service was disrupted on nine London Underground train lines. The UK press reported substantial delays for commuters and over-crowding of roads and alternative forms of public transport. The effects of the action on commuters were exacerbated by the presence of tens of thousands of football fans in London for a match played by the England football team on 10 June.
According to the London Chamber of Commerce, the economy of London stood to lose about GBP 100 million (€116.3 million as at 16 July 2009) as a result of the strike. During the course of the protest action, the local public authorities attempted to implement measures that would minimise the impact of the strike on the city and its transport network. TfL provided an extra 100 buses and a free river ferry service for affected commuters, and also offered extra parking and escorts for cyclists in the city.
Public reaction
RMT General Secretary, Bob Crow, justified the action in the following terms:
If London Underground and TfL want to avoid confrontation they should start talking seriously about pay, withdraw their plans to slash jobs, guarantee there will be no forced redundancies and call off the bully managers.
The Transport Commissioner for London with responsibility for TfL, Peter Hendy, commented:
RMT’s leadership has shown yet again that no matter how far an offer is made, they would rather strike than talk. Their attitude is a slap in the face to all hard-working Londoners and businesses struggling through a deep recession.
The government was also critical of the action. Transport Secretary, Lord Adonis, stated: ‘I deplore the underground strike in London … and urge RMT to engage constructively with TfL to ensure that there is no repetition.’
Commentary
As with previous strikes affecting the London Underground, the June 2009 dispute caused a relatively high level of disruption to the London transport system and attracted considerable media coverage. The strike will do little to alter the public perception of the transport sector as one characterised by high rates of trade union militancy and industrial action. Critics of RMT also continue to allege that the trade union irresponsibly uses the crucial economic and logistical importance of the London Underground to the UK’s capital as a means to extract greater concessions from TfL. Those of the latter view note that the dates of the strike coincided with a key sporting event in the capital, and have warned that RMT is likely to attempt to cause disruption to the city’s transport system in the run-up to the 2012 London summer Olympics.
Thomas Prosser, IRRU, University of Warwick