LONDON. Workers at 14 UK train operators are on strike again to demand higher wages as the cost of living rises. It is estimated that only 40-50% of trains will operate in the UK today, resulting in disruption for millions of passengers. The union action follows recent protests by teachers, medical specialists and civil servants demanding wage increases to deal with rising inflation, which stands at 10.1%. The rail and sea transport union (RMT), which called the strike, estimates that more than 20,000 workers will join. The union called another mobilization on March 30 and April 1. These strikes add to many others that the sector has staged in recent months. The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, which represents workers at the British Passport Office, called a strike on Friday on April 3 to demand better pay.
La protesta a Heathrow
The union of security personnel at terminal number five of London’s Heathrow airport, that of British Airways, has called a 10-day strike – starting from March 31 next – in the context of the ongoing wage dispute.
The Unite union, reports the Bbc, said more than 1,400 of its members employed at Heathrow will go on strike until 9 April, which is Easter Sunday. The strike, the union specified, will affect both the security personnel at Terminal 5 and the personnel who check the goods arriving at the airport. Heathrow Airport Holdings announced in a statement that contingency plans are in place to keep the airport operational: passengers can rest assured that the airport will be “open and operational despite unnecessary threats from Unite to strike,” reads the statement. Note. The company also said it had proposed “a 10% wage increase in line with inflation,” but the union says the offer doesn’t compensate for years of wage freezes and cuts.
Half the trains won’t run