Merseyrail staff have voted overwhelmingly to accept a 7.1% pay deal with the transport operator.
Members of the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) union in general grades at Merseyrail voted by 94% to accept the deal, with members in management grades being offered the same terms. The offer for general grades will be backdated to the first Sunday in April 2022 and if accepted the management grades pay will be applicable from 1 July.
The members involved in the pay deal include Merseyrail station retailers, customer relations assistants, lead revenue protection officers, train crew admin assistants, driver managers, guards standards managers, station managers, service production managers, resource controllers, train service delivery managers and staff in fleet, safety, finance, HR, IT and transformation.
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They are based in the company's head office in Liverpool Rail House as well as locations like Aintree Station, Birkenhead Central Station, Birkenhead North Train Crew Depot, James Street station, Kirkdale Depot, Liverpool Central Station, Sandhills IECC, Southport Station, West Kirkby Station.
The union accepted an offer based on the November RPI (inflation) rate of 7.1% because this was consistent with the pay offered to other grades with a pay anniversary date falling at that point in the calendar.
The agreement comes as the Rail and Maritime Transport Workers union continues its nationwide strike this week in its battle for a 7% pay rise for staff working on the railway. The first strike was held yesterday, with further action to come tomorrow and on Saturday.
The union has blamed the government for getting in the way of negotiations with Network Rail and train companies. As a fully devolved Train Operating Company (TOC), Merseyrail is not required to involve government in its decision making over issues like pay awards and industrial action.
TSSA leader Manuel Cortes said the Merseyrail agreement shows that it is the government blocking the route to agreements elsewhere on the railways.
Responding to the agreement, TSSA leader Manuel Cortes said: “Well done to our members and to our union staff for clinching this deal at Merseyrail. It is a sensible outcome to a reasonable offer which goes a long way towards keeping pace with the escalating cost of living.
“What we have seen in our negotiations with Merseyrail is a company which knows the value of our rail and transport network, both to the public and the workers. What this clearly shows is our union, and sister unions, are in no way a block on finding the solutions needed to avoid a summer of discontent on the railways. Rather, it is the government who are intent on digging in their heels.
“The offer from Merseyrail will demonstrate to the entire country that Ministers are set on a course of needless and nonsensical intransigence which benefits no one. Grant Shapps and co would be wise to wake up and start talking seriously to our union as we ballot for industrial action on our railways up and down the land.”
Andy Heath, Merseyrail Managing Director said: “As part of our normal annual pay negotiations, we recently met with our trade unions colleagues representing the various grades of staff within our business. Those discussions are progressing well but have yet to be concluded.”
“Merseyrail is solely responsible for making such pay offers, working constructively with our trade unions. We are not part of the current National dispute that is taking place between the RMT, Network Rail and Train Operating Companies directly contracted to the DfT."
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