Rail strikes hit UK travellers

LONDON

Rush-hour commuters in the U.K. faced a battle to get to work on Tuesday as thousands of rail workers launched a two-day strike as part of a wave of industrial action planned for the festive period.

Travellers in many parts of the country, including London, have already been hit by snow and freezing conditions and now face further disruption due to the strikes called by Britain’s largest rail union.

Picket lines appeared at major stations early yesterday to kick off a month of action, with people advised only to travel if essential.

Trains are only running from 7:30 am to 6:30 pm on strike days, with around 20 percent of services expected to run.

The latest round of rail strikes comes as the U.K. is experiencing a wave of industrial action on a scale not seen since the 1980s, fuelled by energy and food price hikes.

Those striking include nurses, postal workers and border force officials.

The rail strikes will be held over two 48-hour periods this week, from yesterday to tommorrow and from Dec. 16 to Dec. 17.

Britain’s Rail, Maritime and Transport workers union (RMT) plans further strikes over Christmas and in early January.

Its members on Dec. 12 rejected a pay offer from Network Rail, the owner of Britain’s railway infrastructure, leading its staff, along with workers from 14 train companies, to walk out.

Network Rail had offered its workers a pay rise of five percent backdated for this year and a further four percent at the start of 2023.

The RMT union confirmed on Dec. 12 that its members had voted to reject this latest offer and would go ahead with strikes.

A YouGov poll last week found that 51 percent opposed the planned rail strikes over Christmas, while 27 percent supported them.

Rail workers previously held strikes in June and October.