Friday 16 November 2012

Not much happened this week apart from repeatedly getting stuck behind the Rail Adhesion Train which trundles up and down the open sections spraying sandite, a mixture of sand, aluminium and adhesive, on the tracks to reduce wheel slippage.  Despite the lack of incident out there on the rails we are having a lot of fun and games on the Boxing Day issue.

Having failed to reach an agreement with our elected representatives LUL have hit upon the brilliant idea of appealing directly to the ASLEF members, the same people who voted 8-1 in favour of going on strike for the last two years and will probably do exactly the same this time around.

The choice of carrots LUL have dangled in front of our noses to try and tempt us to vote against the strike or strike break if the worst comes to the worst are:-

• Volunteer to work on Boxing Day for double or triple time, in exchange for one or two days' leave entitlement respectively


• Volunteer to work on Boxing Day as normal but take the annual leave on another day (which is the current arrangement)

• Take leave on Boxing Day provided that there sufficient volunteers to meet our service obligations.  If there are insufficient volunteers to meet the service obligations, duties will be allocated starting with those newest to the train operator grade.

All very nice but unfortunately for our dark overlords slightly illegal.  According to the ASLEF website under the Working Time Regulations 1998 you cannot offer pay in lieu of untaken holiday except when employment is being terminated.  Also it fails to mention that when 26th December falls on a Saturday or Sunday we do not get a day's annual leave because the Bank holiday moves to 28th December.
 
Oh yes, my friends, we have the finest minds running things from the lofty towers of 55 Broadway.

5 comments:

  1. This has to be the one time of the year I think you guys are right to be striking.

    Forgive me, but when I was young, we managed perfectly well without trains, tubes and buses on Christmas OR boxing day.

    If there are no tubes, hence no customer, the greedy shops might just get the idea of move the sales to start on 27 December, rather than also forcing their staff to work on Boxing Day.

    Keep up the strike vote, the tube really does NOT need to run on Boxing Day

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    Replies
    1. And what about the many thousands of football fans wanting to watch their respective football teams on Boxing Day?

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  2. Anonymous17 November 2012 20:34
    And what about the many thousands of football fans wanting to watch their respective football teams on Boxing Day?

    Presumably they're not working, either...

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  3. Precisely, thanks for that Anonymous! Those fans have day off, but expect to be carried around by people who are forced to work and NOT able to follow their sport/spend time at home by ridiculous need for loads of trains to take people to shops which they could just do the next day - or if that desperate could do online Xmas Day. How sad they all are.

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  4. Thank you Anonymous (both 18 November) precisely my point. Its 2 days of the year when the tube shouldn't be running. Why is there this need for everybody to not even be able to have just TWO days off with their families thats guaranteed time off.

    This need to be at the shops/football matches/sightseeing the minute Christmas Day is over is ridiculous. And no, I'm not a Christian nor am I in defence of any other religion, just in defence of people being able to spend quality time with their families/relatives over the holiday period.

    Football clubs should stop scheduling matches on boxing day and as for the shops, they will still be there on 28 December, and teh shop assistants will have also had a lovely 2 day break.

    ReplyDelete