Train operator representative, the Rail Delivery Group , said the union's leadership has not put its"fair and reasonable offer" to union members."We urge the ASLEF leadership to acknowledge the substantial financial challenges facing the rail industry and work with us," the RDG said.
That offer, the RDG said, would increase the average driver's base salary, for a four-day week, without overtime, from £60,000 to nearly £65,000.Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video playerThe union said most drivers have not had a pay increase in four years and said the offer was"risible".
"We don't want to take this action but the train companies, and the government which stands behind them, have forced us into this place because they refuse to sit down and talk to us," ASLEF's general secretary Mick Whelan said.