iPads and the 4-Day Week for Train Drivers – What’s Going On?

Back in April, ASLEF members on London Underground voted in favour of the agreement to move to a four-day working week. This will be the biggest improvement in working conditions for Underground train drivers in decades. It means an extra 35 days away from work every year — the equivalent of more than an extra month off.

• For the first time in over 30 years, your undisturbed meal break will be counted as part of your working hours. Rosters will be based on a 34-hour week.

  
  

• The longest possible rostered working week will reduce from 42.5 hours now, if you do the roughest turns for 5 days, to 38 hours per week — that’s 4.5 hours fewer at work.

  
  

• Your annual leave entitlement will not change. It will remain at 7.4 weeks. (A week’s leave will now use up only four days of your entitlement instead of five.)

  
  

• This will be voluntary. Anyone who wants to stay on a five-day week will be able to do so.

  
  

• There are already 120 drivers across the combine on a four-day week, with over 130 on waiting lists. Instead of only getting 80% of salary, they will have the option of receiving full pay.

It has always been acknowledged that the changes needed to implement the four-day week would be complicated. Your ASLEF Trains Council reps have been working hard to sort out the details. Unfortunately, the other trade union has tried its best to obstruct the process.

The RMT has opposed every improvement ever negotiated for train drivers. They were against additional payments for Night Tube shifts and even called strikes to try to stop them. They refused to support drivers’ successful action to win payments for Boxing Day. They even opposed the extra payments drivers received for working during the 2012 Olympics! Now they want a strike to stop you being able to volunteer to work a four-day week with no loss of pay!

But despite their delaying tactics, implementation is now going ahead. The first line to pilot it will be the Bakerloo. Over the next few weeks, drivers there will be issued with iPads, allowing a future move away from carrying paper documents (rule books, traffic circulars, etc.).

Draft rosters will be produced for Phase 2, when all running turns will include a paid meal relief — giving 2½ hours less at work per week.

A huge amount of deliberate misinformation about the four-day week plan has been spread over the last year. (Remember the nonsense claims that you would have to take your meal break in the cab of a train?) Draft rosters will allow you to see the facts and make an informed choice.

It is time to stop delaying and obstructing. We want the RMT to work with us to implement the four-day week agreement in the best way possible, so every driver who wants it can benefit as soon as possible.

ASLEF is determined to deliver real improvements for drivers, just as we have done in the past. We need our members’ support to do it. You can join us here: https://aslef.org.uk/join

ASLEF – The Train Drivers’ Union Standing up for drivers. Delivering real change.