A £72,000 salary earned by London Underground drivers is not sufficient to buy a house in the capital, according to rail union leader Eddie Dempsey, as a week-long strike continues to paralyse the city.
The general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union was pressed on the pay of Tube workers during an interview on Times Radio. When asked if £72,000 meant drivers were already well paid, Dempsey said it was “a good wage” but argued it fell short of what was needed to buy a property in London, where the average house price reached £561,000 in June, according to the Office for National Statistics.
RMT members have walked out in a dispute over pay and working hours, with several Tube lines suspended or heavily disrupted. The strike is expected to cost London’s economy at least £230 million, according to research from the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).
Transport for London (TfL) states that Tube drivers earn a starting salary of £71,160, while station staff begin on £35,270, rising to £44,140 after a few months. The RMT is also pushing for a shorter four-day working week, a demand TfL insists is “simply unaffordable”.
Dempsey defended the strike, saying: “We make no apology for fighting hard for our members, and that’s why our members have good conditions. We understand the disruptions are a real pain for people. We take no pleasure in it. But the only way this gets sorted out is through a negotiated settlement.”
He also warned of a “collapse” in industrial relations that could trigger further strike action if no progress is made on recognising the pressures of shift work.
Downing Street has urged both sides to return to talks. A spokesperson for the prime minister said the government wants the RMT and TfL to “work together in good faith to resolve this situation in the interests of passengers.”
TfL has offered workers a 3.4 per cent pay rise, but the RMT has rejected the proposal, insisting that current pay and conditions do not reflect the high cost of living in London.
