LONDON — SWT hopes to run a third of trains for commuters Commuters faced delays as staff on the South West Trains network began their latest 48-hour strike on Monday, BBC News reports.
About 100 managers were brought in by the company to carry out guards’ duties on trains and stations across the region as hundreds of services were cancelled.
But the company says it managed to meet its revised schedule for the stoppage.
A spokeswoman for South West Trains (SWT) said: “It is going as planned – the managers were trained in advance and everything is absolutely fine.”
Strikes condemned
SWT hopes to run a third of its scheduled services despite up to 2,500 Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members expected to take part in the action.
Meanwhile Prime Minister Tony Blair believes the rail strikes cannot be justified and the travelling public should not be inconvenienced.
His spokesman said he thinks the dispute should have been solved without inconvenience to the public.
The move to bring in managers as guards prompted a fresh row between the two sides but SWT’s managing director Andrew Haines denied reports the firm was also trying recruit more non-union staff.
About 1,100 of SWT’s trains from the south coast into London were cancelled leading to significant disruption and packed carriages.
Members of the RMT are also due to stage a protest march from London’s Waterloo station.
The strike is the third to hit SWT this year and follows a spate of regional walk-outs which have put further pressure on the government to improve the rail network.
Disarray
The last time RMT members walked out on SWT its train services fell into disarray.
Many passengers decided to stay at home rather than battle their way to work when 95% of services were cancelled.
The row centres on RMT demands for a better pay deal, while SWT says it has offered more money than any other train operator in the country.
A row over the disciplining of an RMT official, Greg Tucker has also exacerbated the dispute.
Duties
Mr Haines said that by training managers to take on guards’ and station duties they will counteract the effects of the walk-out.
He said: “Eventually we will be able to run sufficient trains so that people can go on strike and it will not impact on customers.
“I am a trade unionist myself, and we are not looking for non-unionised staff.
“We are training our managers, we have trained 100 and we will train another 100, and any new staff cannot be prevented from joining a union.”
Although the RMT union has accused the firm of compromising safety, SWT insists it has the approval of the Health and Safety Executive for its plans.
Mr Haines has also written to season ticket holders warning them to expect overcrowding and longer journeys.
Negotiations
The union’s acting general secretary Vernon Hince accused the company of refusing to attend fresh negotiations.
He said: “It is now crystal clear that despite statements to the contrary, SWT has no intention of seeking an amicable solution to this dispute.
“We have been waiting for a reply from the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) but obviously Acas cannot get SWT around the negotiating table.
“Really, until they are prepared to do that, I don’t see how we can move forward.”