Due to pressure from rising costs of living and decades-high inflation, train drivers embarked on a new strike that disrupted rail services to a large parts of the United Kingdom, including popular tourist routes.
The Aslef union representing the train drivers will take part in a three-day strike which will affect five major rail operating firms and will also affect the express services to London’s Gatwick, Stansted and Heathrow airport. On Saturday and Monday, more train drivers from various firms would strike as overtime restrictions would also be put into place.
For wage increases, workers in a variety of industries, including health practitioners, lawyers, teachers, and the shipping sectors, have gone on strike.
A general election is expected to be called by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak later this year, as current polls indicate that Keir Starmer’s main opposition Labour party will handily defeat his government.
The RMT rail union, which represents a variety of rail workers, had a vote in November of last year in favor of a pay agreement that put an end to more than a year of walkouts.
A representative for the Department for Transport stated, “Aslef is the only rail union continuing to strike, targeting passengers and preventing their own members from voting on the pay offer that is still on the table.”
The Transport Secretary and Rail Minister have ensured that a pay offer is on the table – taking train drivers’ average salaries from £60,000 up to £65,000 ($75,800-$82,100), having resolved disputes with all other rail unions.”
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