London Underground strikes starting next week have been called off, a train driver’s union has announced. Aslef said that members will not walk out for 24 hours on 8 April and 4 May. A spokesperson for Aslef said that “key issues” had been “successfully resolved… without the need for strikes”. Transport for London (TfL) had warned that Tube strikes would leave Londoners with little to no service on the network.
Nick Dent, director of customer operations for London Underground, said: “We are pleased that Aslef has withdrawn its planned industrial action on Monday 8 April and Saturday 4 May. We will continue to work constructively with the trade unions to avoid disruption and address concerns.”
Sadiq Khan said it was “good news for Londoners
Mr Khan said in a post on X: “This demonstrates – once again – what can be achieved by talking and engaging with transport staff and trade unions rather than working against them. A spokesperson for Aslef said that after a series of meetings at the conciliation service Acas, its negotiating team has received a proposal that resolves the dispute’s key issues.
“Management has confirmed that they have disbanded their ‘Trains Modernisation’ team and will not be implementing their plans to changes drivers’ working arrangements without agreement,” they said. They have also agreed to reinstate annual refresher training [that was] stopped during the pandemic.”
The spokesperson added that an agreement had also been made to hire a team to deal with anti-social behaviour on the Night Tube. And new cab-security locks would also be installed “to make our members’ workplace safer”, they said.
Source: BBC
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