RMTcalls overtime ban

The dispute over the changes in the conditions of employment for the 12,000 RMT trade union members involved in railway maintenance work could affect three contractors by Thursday night.

RMT leaders have called for a continuous overtime ban plus an end of voluntary nightwork from midnight Thursday for its members who work for Jarvis, Centrac (a Tarmac subsidiary), and Balfour Beatty Rail Maintenance.

A fourth employer, GTRM, could also be hit. An RMT spokesman said: "We're not talking to them. The company sacked Steve Hedley, a union representative elected by RMT members at Euston, and there will be no deal without his reinstatement."

Mike Casebourne, md of GTRM, said that Steve Hedley was dismissed for misconduct. "He is attempting to gather support amongst union colleagues and that support does not appear to be forthcoming,".

Least likely to be hit is Amey Rail. A union spokesman said: "There is a deal pending with Amey. Once we settle with Amey we will probably use this as a benchmark for the other employers."

Contractors who bought railway maintenance and track renewal businesses during the privatisation of British Rail were Amec, Amey, Balfour Beatty, Jarvis and Tarmac. In Scotland, a management buyout led to the formation of First Engineering. Trackside workers typically earn £20,000 to £40,000 a year.

The employers are split between those who want a national settlement with the RMT, this group being led by Amec, and others who prefer individual settlements - Jarvis, Amey and Balfour Beatty fall into this camp.

Peter Mason, chief executive of Balfour Beatty, said: "Contractors who have an existing M&E division with a history of collective bargaining, want a national settlement. It makes sense as contracts will change hands in the future, and operatives with them."

However, Amey's chief executive Brian Staples took the opposite view. "We want matters to be sorted out individually. At Amey, we think we have done this. We have the agreement of the local RMT and are now waiting for our workforce's ballot.

"We have 1,200 railway operatives and 40-50 per cent are RMT members. We are not trying to claw money back. We want to pay them in a different way, so they are paid when they are working. The existing system is outdated."

Bernard Westerbrook, human resources director at Jarvis, said: "We want employees to earn the same money from less hours, or more money from the same hours. I expect Jarvis' final offer to be tabled by the end of this week for them to consider calling off the overtime ban. This is not a crucial issue, however, as some employees have contracts that see them working through weekends."

The RMT's spokesman said: "Both sides want change. Given goodwill, settlement will soon be achieved."