More Tube strike dates announced

The threat of disruption to Tube passengers in London increased today when another strike was announced, heightening fears of travel chaos in the capital in the coming months.

The Rail Maritime and Transport union said around 200 maintenance workers employed by Alstom-Metro at depots on the Jubilee and Northern lines will stage four 24-hour walkouts from the evening of September 5 in a row over pay and conditions.

The strikes will start at 7pm on September 5, with further action scheduled for the same time on October 2, November 1, and November 27.

An indefinite overtime ban will also begin on September 5 after a vote in favour of action by union members.

The action will take place a day before strikes by up to 10,000 members of the RMT and the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA), who will walk out for 24 hours from 5pm on September 6, the day many people return to work after the summer holidays and the House of Commons resumes following the recess.

Maintenance and engineering staff will be involved in the first stoppage, with similar 24-hour stoppages planned from 5pm on October 3, November 2 and November 28.

Other workers, including Tube drivers, signallers and station staff, will strike for 24 hours from 9pm on the same four days, threatening disruption in the evening of the walkouts as well as the following days.

The action will include an indefinite overtime ban from September 6, following votes in favour of strikes over plans to cut 800 jobs among station staff.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow said of the latest dispute: "Alstom is a major trans-national company that has been making immense profits and is happy to shovel dividends to its shareholders, but has offered what would amount to a pay cut to our members.

"The deal on offer is worth less than half of those won by other Tube workers this year, and the massive vote for action should tell Alstom all they need to know about our members' determination to win a fair pay deal."

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has warned that a Tube strike would be "seriously damaging", while business leaders said the walkouts will cost the economy tens of millions of pounds.