There will be strikes Tuesday 21 June , Thursday 23 June and Saturday 25 June 2022 for 24 hours on South Western Railway and Network Rail. Train networks have advised passengers to only travel if absolutely necessary and seek alternative routes if possible and expect severe disruption.

This strike is set to be the Britain’s most widespread industrial action this century, and would reduce services by around 80 per cent.

On Tuesday 21 June, up to 50,000 workers across Network Rail, 13 train operators and London Underground are due to walk out. The RMT has announced a 24-hour strike on the London Underground on Tuesday 21 June.

On Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June, about 40,000 rail operators – but not London Underground staff – will strike. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union will walk out on Network Rail and 13 train companies next week, while the RMT and Unite have announced a strike on London Underground as well.

These strikes will be more disruptive than the 2018 strikes as all staff are striking (employees in depots, electric engineers etc). However SWR have quickly trained up people to still run services on key routes where the most movement is. South Western Railway have assured me that these staff have all been fully trained in safety.

There will be 4 trains an hour at Putney Station, Wandsworth Station, Barnes, Wimbledon and Clapham Junction into Waterloo. However, there will be no services at all at Earlsfield Station, Raynes Park and Queenstown Road.

However, as there are so few services, the trains will be very full and delays and last-minute cancellations are very likely.

Labour does not want to see this strike action go ahead. It would be a bad for workers, passengers and the economy. But it can still be avoided. Ministers need to step-up and show some leadership, and employers and the unions need to get around the table and address the real issues on pay and cuts to safety and maintenance staff behind the dispute.

The government has insisted on 10% cuts to rail operators and Network Rail. As a result, 19,000 rail services have been axed, and industrial relations are at a low. Network Rail is expected to cut 2,500 maintenance staff as part of the Government’s drive to find savings.

In Labour-run Wales, train staff have not gone on strike, with all sides working together to manage change.

Despite a national rail strike on the scale not seen for a generation, ministers have failed to hold talks to resolve this since March.

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