Train drivers on £60,000 a year announce new rail strike on July 2

Train drivers on £60,000 a year announce new rail strike on July 2: Avanti West Coast passengers will be hit while overtime ban will affect London North Eastern Railway

• It comes days after train drivers voted to keep taking strike action for six months

Train drivers on £60,000 a year have announced yet another rail strike on July 2.   

Avanti West Coast passengers will be hit while an overtime ban will affect London North Eastern Railway, their union Aslef announced. 

The news comes just days after union barons at Aslef said train drivers have voted overwhelmingly to continue taking strike action for the next six months in their long-running pay dispute.

The union said a re-ballot of its members showed they are ‘in it for the long haul’, as they vowed to continue their relentless campaign of industrial action. 

The news will come as a fresh blow for millions of commuters who have faced months of misery and disruption as unions hold Britain’s railway network hostage.

Train drivers on £60,000 a year have announced a new rail strike on July 2

Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, joined union members on the picket line outside Newcastle station

Avanti West Coast passengers will be hit while an overtime ban will affect London North Eastern Railway, their union Aslef announced

Unions involved in industrial disputes have to hold a fresh ballot every six months to ask their members if they want to continue taking action.

Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan said: ‘Once again our members have decided that we are in this for the long haul. 

‘Train drivers are sick to the back teeth of their employers and the Government failing to negotiate in good faith, and blaming drivers for their inability to manage services and the rail industry effectively.

‘Aslef members, the key workers who kept our country moving through the pandemic, are simply asking for a fair deal on pay so that they can afford to keep up with their outgoings in this Government-made cost-of-living crisis.

‘We have always said we are prepared to come to the table but the Government and the train companies need to understand that this dispute won’t be resolved by trying to bully our members into accepting worse terms and conditions.’

Those at London North Eastern Railway will ban overtime from next month in separate disputes to the ongoing national row over pay, their union Aslef announced

Aslef balloted 12,500 of its members at 15 train operators, with most voting by more than 90 per cent in favour of continuing with strikes and other forms of industrial action.

Some of the drivers have now been balloted three times since the dispute started last year.

Aslef has taken 11 days of strike action since last summer, with the latest taking place during the half-term break earlier this month.

The latest round of strikes saw 12,000 drivers walking out as the row over pay and working conditions continued.

The chaos saw services being severely reduced nationwide, causing misery for thousands of football fans hoping to watch the FA Cup final at Wembley.

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