RAIL STRIKE SUSPENDED

Thursday 24 Jun 2004

RAIL STRIKE SUSPENDED

Region & Route:: National

Network Rail today confirmed that it has been informed by the RMT union that the national rail strike scheduled for 29/30 June has been cancelled. Network Rail Chief Executive John Armitt said: “This is excellent news for passengers. I am pleased that we have been able come to an agreement without any need for a strike. “This confirms my belief that this dispute was always best resolved through talking rather than striking. We had reached agreement on the issues of pay and travel some weeks ago, and I am pleased now that the pensions issue is resolved too. “This is a fair deal for the Company and our employees, rewarding length of service and commitment to Network Rail. Rail passengers all over the country will share our delight that we have come to an agreement.” The new offer will mean a fair deal for all with new entrants to Network Rail joining a new defined contributions pension scheme and rewards length of service to the Company by allowing entrance to the final salary scheme after five years service. - more - Strike off - 2 The key elements of the 2004 pay offer for signallers are:

Two-year pay deal with a 3.5% increase in year one, plus an increase of RPI + 0.75% in year two (subject to a minimum year two increase of 3% and a maximum of 4%).
Creation of a Pensions Forum to provide an opportunity for the trade unions to negotiate and be consulted upon pensions matters.
After five years service, members of the defined contributions scheme will be allowed entry into the final salary scheme, should they choose to. The length of service of employees joining Network Rail under TUPE arrangements as part of the bringing in-house of maintenance will count towards the five year eligibility criteria.
Provision of travel benefits to all employees, with a 25% discount off a home-to-work season ticket

Bold italics indicates new element The key elements of the offer for maintenance workers are:

One-year pay deal, with a 3.0% increase
A one-off lump sum payment of £100 to all
All maintenance workers allowed into the Network Rail 2003/04 general bonus scheme on a pro-rata basis
Creation of a Pensions Forum to provide an opportunity for the trade unions to negotiate and be consulted upon pensions matters.
After five years service, members of the defined contributions scheme will be allowed entry into the final salary scheme, should they choose to. The length of service of employees joining Network Rail under TUPE arrangements as part of the bringing in-house of maintenance will count towards the five year eligibility criteria.
Provision of travel benefits to all employees, with a 25% discount off a home-to-work season ticket

Bold italics indicates new element

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