More taIks on Monday, but it is now time for London Underground to pay up !

Almost eight months on from submitting our pay claim, members still don’t know when you will receive your pay rise for 2025. It is a ridiculous amount of time for talks to be dragged out and means that it will be well into 2026 before you receive your back pay.

The delay means that people retiring could miss out entirely on the back pay and see their pension calculated on the basis of the current salary instead of a higher increased one.

Failing to conclude negotiations is costing people money and benefiting nobody.

At the last meeting management offered a three-year deal of 3.4 % and a pay rise in line with the RPI rate of inflation for 2026 and 2027. We recognised that this is a serious offer as it is in line with offers accepted by all the rail trade unions in other parts of the industry and gives you an inflation linked pay rise for the next two years.

While this is a big step forward, ASLEF have told management that:

·         We want a guaranteed minimum percentage pay rise in case the RPI rate falls and

·         An RPI plus element so you see a real improvement in living standards.

We will return to talks on Monday morning and want management to quickly agree these points in a definitive proposal that we can put to our members to decide on.

As well as getting you the pay rise you deserve, we want rapid progress on rolling out the 4 day week so Underground drivers can enjoy the same quality time off as every other train driver in the UK. Bizarrely the RMT are still trying to obstruct this and even threatening to strike to stop you having an extra day off every week!

 Every single one of the changes in working arrangements involved in the 4-day week, from using iPads to shift lengths and the ability to work voluntary overtime has been agreed by the RMT for other grades on London Underground. There is no justification for their fruitless attempts at obstruction. Time and time again we have asked them to work with us to improve conditions for all our driver members. Every time they have refused.

The RMT refused to support the Olympic agreements that triggered big payments for drivers across the combine. They refused to support the Boxing Day dispute that means drivers get well rewarded if you volunteer to work. They refused to support payments for volunteers for Night Tube duties.

Now the RMT are threatening to strike to stop drivers, on a voluntary basis, working a 4-day week on a 34-hour roster. It is the first time in history that a trade union has called a strike to stop its members having fewer hours at work and more days off every week with no loss of pay!

ASLEF has always been the union that delivers for train drivers on London Underground. While others make promises they can’t deliver and expect members to lose money so they can boost their media profile, we do the hard work of negotiating real improvements and representing members interests.

If you want to see your pay rise and a 4-day working week delivered, the choice is clear.

Join ASLEF here https://aslef.org.uk/join

Finn Brennan

ASLEF District Organiser.