Train driver’s pay could rise to £65k over a four-day week, but the union are still planning strikes.

Earlier this week, the RMT union said they had voted to end their involvement in train strikes after accepting a pay deal. However, the Aslef union that represents the drivers said they are still planning industrial action.

The change comes ahead of a winter in which strikes among rail staff were feared over working conditions, hours, and pay. On Thursday, members of the RMT said they had agreed on an offer from 14 train companies for a backdated pay rise of five percent.

One of the results of this action is that RMT members no longer have to be involved in industrial action until spring at the earliest, but Aslef says it is still planning action later this year.

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According to the BBC, Aslef members are due to take part in a “rolling programme” of industrial action between December 2 and December 8. On each day different train companies will be hit by walkouts.

Drivers have also said they will refuse to work any overtime between December 1 and December 8 as the festive season begins and people rely more on rail travel.

Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary said the union was “determined to win this dispute” as they aimed to get a “significant pay rise for train drivers who have not had an increase since 2019”.

He added: “We are going on strike again, not to inconvenience passengers but to express our disgust at the intransigence of this government, and the bad faith shown by the private companies which employ us.”

RMT’s temporary withdrawal from industrial action marks a change in position a year after strikes hit the UK last winter. Speaking about the agreement reached, the RMT’s general secretary Mick Lynch said he wanted to congratulate members on their “steadfastness” during a “long industrial campaign”.

Mr Lynch added that the RMT would “never shy away from vigorously defending our members’ terms and conditions, now or in the future”. The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) meanwhile have welcomed the vote.

They called on Aslef to “work with us to resolve this dispute for the long-term good of everyone who works in rail and the millions of businesses and passengers who rely on it every day”.

In a statement about the strikes, Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the RMT’s acceptance of the pay officer was the beginning of a journey to new reforms. He said: “This is welcome news for passengers and a significant step towards resolving industrial disputes on the railway, giving workers a pay rise before Christmas and a pathway to delivering long overdue reforms.”

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Mr Harper said the new offer would lead to an average salary of around £60,000 to £65,000 over a four-day week and encouraged Aslef to accept the offer.

One of the reasons why the strikes have been so important ahead of the festive period is because of their impact on the UK’s hospitality sector which sees its peak income during Christmas and many of the people who work in the sector rely on trains to get to work.

Earlier this month UK Hospitality released a statement warning that strikes over Christmas could cost the sector £800m. Chief executive Kate Nicholls said: “These strikes will hit hospitality businesses at the start of the critical festive period and will devastate trading during one of the busiest weeks of the year, costing the sector up to £800 million.

“I would urge all parties to get back round the table to resume negotiations and work urgently to reach a solution that avoids these devastating strikes, including following the lead of the RMT who have reached an agreement to avoid strikes over Christmas. The significant impact to trading that these strikes will cause reinforces the critical need for the Chancellor to extend business rates support at the Autumn Statement next week, to help businesses navigate and offset the damage of ongoing rail strikes.”

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