Strike disrupts London’s transport network
LONDON: London’s transport network ground to a halt yesterday as train and bus workers held strikes over pay and conditions, the latest in a summer of labour market disputes as doubledigit inflation eats into wages.
All London Underground and Overground train lines were suspended or partsuspended and dozens of bus routes in the west of the city were disrupted, Transport for London (TfL) said.
Tens of thousands of workers from the wider national rail network walked out yesterday and will do so again tomorrow.
Commuters across the country have already endured disruption from rail strikes this year, organised by unions demanding pay and conditions for their members that better reflect the soaring cost of living caused by energy pricedriven inflation.
Data showed inflation at 10.1% in July, the highest since February 1982, as rising energy costs resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine hit consumers directly through their household bills, and indirectly through rising food prices.
That has led to a standoff between firms, who say rising costs and falling demand limit their room to negotiate, unions who say their workers cannot afford to live and the government, which is worried that big wage increases may fuel inflation.
TfL is itself in prolonged negotiations with the government after the expiration of an emergency state funding deal, in part necessitated by a postpandemic fall in passengers.
Workers in other industries are also planning strikes or moving towards industrial action. These include port workers, lawyers, teachers, nurses, firefighters, and waste collection, airport and postal staff. — Reuters