Transport for London has invited the RMT union to peace talks next week in a new bid to solve the dispute that sparked a five-day Tube strike.
TfL’s lead negotiator Nick Dent wrote to his opposite number at the RMT, Jared Wood, on Thursday afternoon, saying the walkout - which is due to end at midnight on Thursday - had been in “no-one interests”.
Mr Dent said that TfL “remain committed to finding a resolution to the dispute” and invited the Tube’s biggest union the chance to take part in talks next Wednesday, September 17.
This is the first sign of an olive branch since TfL ended negotiations with the RMT eight days ago - which effectively paved the way for the first strike to shut the London Underground in two years.
An RMT source said: “This is a step in the right direction from TfL and has only occurred due to the industrial pressure from RMT members this week.”
The RMT is seeking the long-term aim of a 32-hour, four-day week, primarily to tackle concerns about fatigue due to shift working.
The strike is not about Tube drivers seeking a bumper pay rise, contrary to reports in other media.
RMT members have brought the Underground to a standstill for much of the working week, other than occasional “shuttle” services in the suburbs. RMT members on the DLR walked out in a separate dispute over pay and conditions on Tuesday and Thursday.
TfL has refused to cut the basic 35-hour week on the Underground but Mr Dent, in his letter, told Mr Wood: “During our most recent discussions, you raised concerns about fatigue and have repeated these concerns in your public statements during the period of industrial action.
“As we have previously said, we want to discuss the issue of fatigue management with you and would like to continue this dialogue next week.”
The potential breakthrough came after Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan escaped a public grilling on his decision not to personally intervene in the Tube strike negotiations.
He was subjected to just three minutes of questioning during the three-hour Mayor’s Question Time session in front of the 25-member London Assembly at City Hall on Thursday morning.
This was despite the scale of the disruption on the London Underground being as bad as at any point during the strike – including a second 24-hour walkout on the DLR (Docklands Light Railway) – with only parts of the District and Piccadilly lines in operation by Thursday afternoon.
The walkout, by RMT union members in a bid to secure a partial reduction in the 35-hour working week and begin a move towards a four-day week, began on Sunday and is due to end at midnight on Thursday.
However, the knock-on impacts are expected to mean few if any Tube services before 8am on Friday.
The assembly is a cross-party group of directly-elected politicians whose primary role is to scrutinise the mayor and to stand up for Londoners.
Only one assembly member – Tory transport spokesman Keith Prince – bothered to question the mayor, who is also chair of the TfL board, about his “failure” not to intervene to get the strike called off.
Assembly members spent more time questioning the mayor about the “free speech” arrest of comedian Graham Linehan and the number of arrests made at a Palestine Action protest last weekend.
In a 33-second opening statement about the Tube strike, Sir Sadiq said: “I share the frustration felt by everyone whose journeys have been disrupted this week and I want to thank Londoners for their patience and resilience.”
He urged the RMT and TfL to return to the negotiating table. He said TfL had “worked hard” to deliver as much service as possible. He said he was pleased that TfL had been able to operate “shuttle services” for short periods on some Tube lines.
Mr Prince began by saying he he hoped the mayor had a “smooth ride in” to City Hall – a remark that went unanswered.
He then asked about Sir Sadiq’s pledge, made before he became mayor in 2016, to have “zero strikes” on the Tube and to “roll up his sleeves” and work with the unions.
Mr Prince asked: “What have you done, Mr Mayor, prior to this strike and during the strike, in relation to meeting with people of influence to try and avert this strike?”
Sir Sadiq said that TfL met the RMT on four occasions prior to the strike beginning last Sunday – before referring to Mr Prince’s past criticism when he intervened in a previous dispute.
“I think the words he used were: ‘It’s Ill-judged for the mayor to personally intervene’,” Sir Sadiq said. “I’m confused – is he now criticising the mayor for not personally intervening?”
Mr Prince asked whether the £30m pay rise the mayor “threw” at the unions to avert a RMT strike in January 2024 – four months before the 2024 mayoral election – was a “good use of public money”.
Sir Sadiq said he had taken the money from City Hall reserves to ease the impact of the cost-of-living crisis for public sector workers that stemmed from former Tory prime minister Liz Truss’s “mini Budget”.
Mr Prince then asked Sir Sadiq why he had not intervened on this occasion. Sir Sadiq said that was because there was “no crisis caused by a mini Budget” or high inflation.
Sie Sadiq said: “What we have seen is a situation where skilled negotiators from TfL were talking to the RMT up until the strikes began. I’m confident these talks will resume once the strikes are over.”
He added: “These strikes are bad for London, they are bad for those who can’t reach hospital appointments. They are bad for parents who can’t drop their children off at school, they are bad for those who can’t get to their places of work because they haven’t got the luxury (I use the word luxury deliberately) or are able to work from home.
“They are bad for our businesses and hospitality. That’s why it’s really important for the RMT and TfL to negotiate their differences rather than strike action. Strikes are ultimately a sign of failure.”
Mr Prince concluded: “I’m glad you recognise your failure. Thank you very much, Mr Mayor.”
Other than an aside from Reform party assembly member Alex Wilson, there was no further discussion of the Tube strike during the session.
