The freezing temperatures will have tested the resolve of striking rail workers huddled on the picket line in December, but the thought of warm beaches in the summer to come might have helped keep the cold at bay.
For Billy, a rail worker for more than 40 years, these thoughts are now simply nothing more than figments of his imagination. A family wedding in Greece is set to take place this year, but he’s had to tell his relatives he cannot attend, owing to the loss of pay since RMT strikes began in June.
“I just can’t afford it,” Billy, who only wanted to give his first name, told the ECHO, standing outside Lime Street Station on Wednesday morning. There, dozens of RMT members lined the picket for the second of what will be four days of industrial action in the first week of the new year.
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By now, the union’s distinctive red and green banners have become a regular feature outside of the city’s main station. The long running dispute over jobs, pay and conditions has led to workers cancelling family events, “putting Christmas on the credit card” and resorting to hot water bottles and blankets to heat their homes through the most bitter months, the ECHO was told.
Negotiations between the RMT and Network Rail, with input from the Government, have been at an impasse for months, leading to today’s action and the dates that have come before. The union has opposed a below inflation 3% pay rise along with modernisation measures, which would include cuts to safety jobs and an increase in working hours.
Earlier this week, noises from Number 10 suggested a resolution could finally be in sight, but striking workers in Liverpool aren’t expecting to lay their banners down any time soon. Speaking to the ECHO from the picket line on Tuesday, Darren Pilling, RMT regional secretary for the North West, said: "Here we are again. Brand new year, same old problems. Here we are trying to defend our terms and conditions and fighting for the future of the railway."
Network Rail has said its deal put forward to the RMT was "fair and reasonable" and urged the union to "sit down with us" and revisit it. On Tuesday, Transport secretary Mark Harper also told the BBC: "I would much rather they got off the picket line and got back round the negotiating table to hammer out a deal on reform and pay with the employers."
The RMT said it would “meet for further talks at any time”, this week or next. “It will take as long as it takes,” added Billy, standing with his friend and colleague Martin, another 40 year veteran of the rails, when asked how much more fight is left in striking workers - both in terms of energy and finances.
For Martin, significant sacrifices are already being made at home in order to remain on the picket line. Even the petrol cost to be here from first light has made a telling dent.
But Martin has his eyes on the bigger picture and the collective struggle he and thousands across the country are a part of. He told the ECHO: “There were certain things we considered at the time of the first strike - pay, conditions.
“But at 5.30am in the morning on the first strike, that changed. We realised that we’re all in this together. This is bigger than the RMT, there is a common goal for people; a decent life, decent conditions. It’s not about what the public see as a pay rise.”
Martin has already lost three days' pay in what is normally one of the most challenging months of the year. The sacrifice of going on strike has therefore brought the cost of living even closer to home.
He said: “We’re having to use electric blankets and hot water bottles around the house. The heating has barely gone on throughout December - we just can’t afford to use it.
“We’re taking the hit now. But we’re going to pay for it worse in the coming months.”
“If we’re taking the hit currently,” added Billy, “we would take the hit 10 fold from what’s on the table [at the negotiations].”
In terms of staffing, Billy explained how the industry “is run on overtime”, as many people pick up the extra hours simply for “a good standard of living.” He notes the irony in rail companies being paid enormous bailouts after the pandemic which have gone to shareholders, but the workforce is being viewed as “the biggest expense,” claiming that companies now want to “slash it.”
For mum of four Jane, who has worked as a train guard for the last four years, there’s mixed emotions about being part of the industrial action. On the one hand, it’s making a deep cut in her household finances as the cost of living bites. But on the other, the effort is as much for her children as for herself.
She told the ECHO: “Last December my gas bill was £137 a month. Now it’s £336. That’s as much as my mortgage.
“Christmas has had to go on the credit card and there’s so much uncertainty that lies ahead. But I see that this is an education for the kids.”
Jane continued: “There’s a reason I am going down and it is to show that we have to fight for what we deserve. It’s a privilege that my kids are able to see that. They can see people who will stand up and fight for what they deserve.”
Martin echoed this sentiment. He added: “This isn’t just about our future, it’s the future of our kids and grandchildren. It’s their future.”
One of the key issues raised on the picket line was the demand on working hours and the potential to be forced into more weekend shifts. Jane regards these shifts as a “slippery slope”, referencing her time working in her previous job in the transport sector.
“I missed countless Easter Sunday’s through working them, not being with kids. Missing football matches,” she said.
For Barry, a rail worker for the last 12 years, who only wanted to give his first name, he already sees fewer weekends than most due to his contract. He told the ECHO how he only has one in four weekends off.
“26 Saturdays and 36 Sundays a year [I have to work], that’s shocking,” he said, adding: “The whole concept of a family unit is built around a weekend. We don’t want to have to be on strike here today, but they’re taking away the work life balance.”
“We’re going to keep coming out, keep coming back,” added Jane, “for a better future for everyone.”
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