Rail strikes SUSPENDED after new pay deal offer - but warning Britons to still face chaos
Rail strikes planned by the RMT have been suspended
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Rail strikes due to wreak havoc across the UK next week have been suspended by the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers' union.
A new pay offer has been put to the union by Network Rail, with RMT members to now vote on whether to accept the deal.
In a statement on Tuesday the union said: “The RMT National Executive Committee has taken the decision to suspend all industrial action on Network Rail following receipt of a new offer from the employer.
“Further updates will be given on all aspects of the national rail dispute in the coming days."
The announcement came after months of strike action
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It means a walk out due to take place from 2am on March 16 until 01.59am on March 17 will not go ahead.
Network Rail chief executive, Andrew Haines said: "We are relieved for our people, passengers and freight customers that industrial action in Network Rail has now been suspended.
"We look forward to further information on plans for a referendum."
The RMT had previously rejected a pay offer from Network Rail for a nine per cent pay rise over two years.
It is thought that the headline pay deal being put forward has not changes, but that some amendments have been made to the way the figure is calculated.
The dispute, which began last summer, focuses on jobs and working conditions as well as pay.
The new offer comes after in February, RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said the union will take “sustained and targeted industrial action over the next few months” as employers are “not being given a fresh mandate by the Government” to offer a new deal.However, there remains no change in the dispute between the RMT and the Rail Delivery Group, with strike action against 14 train operators still to go ahead on March 16, 18, 30 and April 1.
It means services will still be impacted on these dates for customers of: East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, Avanti West Coast, LNER, CrossCountry, TransPennine Express, Greater Anglia, c2c, Chiltern Railways, Southern Rail, Great Northern, Thameslink, Gatwick Express, West Midlands Railway, Southeastern, Northern, South Western Railway.
The Rail Delivery Group appeared frustrated that the Network Rail strike action has been suspended while industrial action against themselves will still go ahead.
It said in a statement: "The RMT leadership's decision to put Network Rail's deal to its membership is a welcome development, but train operating staff will rightly be asking why their union continues to deny them the opportunity to have their say on our equivalent offer."