Two 24-hour strikes planned by London Underground drivers this week have been called off.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) were due to walk out at 12 noon tomorrow and again on Thursday in a dispute over the working week.
A union spokesperson said: “At the 11th hour the employer has shifted its position allowing us to further explore our members’ concerns around the imposition of new rosters, fatigue and safety issues.
“The dispute is not over and more strike action will follow if we fail to make sufficient progress.”
Strikes scheduled for June 16 and 18 have also been called off, but the union announced new 24-hour strike dates of June 2 and 4 if the dispute remains unresolved.
The union says its members oppose a new four day working week arrangement on the underground.
Nick Dent, director of customer operations for London Underground, said: “We are pleased that RMT has withdrawn its planned industrial action this week. This is good news for London.
“Our proposal for a voluntary four-day week is designed to improve both work-life balance for drivers and the reliability of service for customers. We look forward to further discussions on the implementation of these proposals with all of our trade unions.”
Ed Richardson, programme director for transport at BusinessLDN, said: “Businesses and Londoners will welcome the decision to call off these Tube strikes at the eleventh hour.
“But many firms will already have lost out through cancelled bookings and reservations so it’s now vital that both sides come to a longer-term resolution.
“With London heading into a busy summer, avoiding further strikes will be vital to help keep the capital’s economy moving forward.”
