RMT–ScotRail Talks Derailed
When is a negotiation not a negotiation? When both parties involved admit that on the one substantive issue involved, there is no movement. Here’s the story.
In March this year, a ticket inspector working for ScotRail, the main provider of train services in Scotland (I suppose you might argue that the clue is in the name!) reduced a passenger to tears. This was a first on Britain’s railways; normally it is late-running trains and cancelations that reduce passengers to tears, but on this occasion, sadly for Scott Lewis, the ticket inspector involved, he had got the whole thing completely wrong.
According to a “ScotRail spokesman”, Mr Lewis “was dismissed on grounds of intimidating and aggressive behavior towards a passenger, who was reduced to tears during the incident. Grounds also included having a complete disregard of the correct ticket procedures. The dismissal followed the ticket examiner refusing to accept that the customer was allowed free travel under a special ScotRail deal to promote a new route out of an airport. It is a longstanding, well-known arrangement”.
The RMT stepped in on Lewis’s behalf demanding his reinstatement and put the matter to ballot. According to ScotRail, the results were as follows: of the 2,200 RMT members employed by ScotRail and in response to the question, “Are you prepared to take strike action?” the number of votes cast was 819. Yes–548; No–264; Spoiled papers–7. 65% of the members did not vote. Of those who did, the ‘yes’ vote is 24% of the overall membership.
The Morning Star, a newspaper that describes itself as “socialist”, claimed that this result was “an overwhelming strike vote in support of Scott Lewis, who RMT claims had been unfairly dismissed for trying to help a passenger buy the correct ticket.” I would venture that the use of the word “overwhelming” in this