Tube drivers’ £72,000 salary not enough to buy house in London, union boss says
Striking tube workers ‘can’t afford houses in London’ on current salaries
- A week-long Tube strike in London, led by the RMT union, has caused significant disruption across the capital due to a dispute over pay and working hours.
- RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey stated that a £72,000 salary, earned by some striking Tube workers, is insufficient to purchase a house in London, where the average price is £561,000.
- Transport for London (TfL) reports that the average Tube driver's starting salary is £71,160, while station staff begin on £35,270, increasing to £44,140.
- The Centre for Economics and Business Research estimates the strike will cost London's economy at least £230 million.
- Downing Street has urged the RMT and TfL to return to negotiations, while TfL's offer of a 3.4 per cent pay rise has been rejected, and the union's demand for a four-day working week deemed unaffordable.