Commuter face rail chaos tomorrow (Wednesday) as train union ASLEF will be striking across the UK.
The strike action will cause train disruption across the north and will increase demand on Merseyrail services, although Merseyrail itself is not affected.
Train drivers across Britain will be walking out in a dispute over pay. They will also not be working overtime from this week until Friday.
Train drivers previously took action on July 30 and August 13, but employers are still unable to come up with an offer which is acceptable to the union.
Inflation this year reached 12%, but train drivers point out they have not had a pay rise since 2019.
“We are left with no choice”
The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) rejected the offer made by the employer of a 4% pay increase.
Mick Whelan, secretary-general of ASLEF, said: “Pay offers from train operating companies have been well below the level of inflation and with no ability for the employers to freely negotiate due to the restrictions imposed upon them by the Conservative Government we were left with no choice but to ballot our members for strike action.”
Merseyrail will not be striking but warn that other northern train operations could impact the demand for services. Merseyrail train times should operate as usual with minor disruptions.
Featured image by Barbara Langley.
