Train strikes: October 2023 dates as Tube action cancelled

Members of the drivers’ union Aslef at 16 train operators in England will walk out on Wednesday (October 4) causing the first day of travel disruption in October.

This is coinciding with the final day of the annual conference of the Conservative Party in Manchester.

An overtime ban is also currently in place from October 2 to 6 which will likely disrupt rail travel for over a week.

Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, told the PA news agency that the government was preventing a settlement to the year-long dispute.

He said: “Our members have not had a pay rise for four years – since 2019 – and that’s not right when prices have soared in that time.

“Train drivers, perfectly reasonably, want to be able to buy now what they could buy four years ago.”

Which train services will be affected by the October strikes?

16 train companies will be affected by the upcoming industrial action, these include:

• Avanti West Coast
• Chiltern Railways
• c2c
• CrossCountry
• East Midlands Railway
• Greater Anglia
• GTR Great Northern Thameslink
• Great Western Railway
• Island Line
• LNER
• Northern Trains
• Southeastern
• Southern, including Gatwick Express
• South Western Railway
• TransPennine Express
• West Midlands Trains

Transport for Wales, ScotRail and the Eurostar is unaffected.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “The government spent £31 billion of taxpayers’ money – £1,000 per household – to protect rail workers’ jobs during the pandemic.

“There is a fair and reasonable offer on the table that would take train drivers’ salaries from £60,000 to £65,000 for a 35-hour, four-day week.

“Aslef’s leaders won’t put this offer to their members and instead continue to strike, damaging their own industry in the process.”

Thanks to everyone who has come out to support ASLEF members in Manchester (where Tory Party Conference is taking place) taking a stand against the government’s attempts to push our industry into decline. #WheresHarper pic.twitter.com/2wGppR3wME

— ASLEF (@ASLEFunion) September 30, 2023

Planned London Tube strikes cancelled for October 2023

Around 3,000 members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) were due to walk out on Wednesday and Friday (October 6).

However, this has now been called off following “significant progress” in talks over jobs and conditions.

The union said: “The significant progress means that key elements have been settled although there remains wider negotiations to be had in the job, pensions and working agreements dispute.”

NEW: Strike action this week has been called off – great news for Londoners.

Despite the government’s onerous funding conditions we’ve avoided strikes.

This is what you can achieve when you work with, not against, unions.https://t.co/ytPhnSUNq0

— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) October 3, 2023

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “I congratulate all our members who were prepared to take strike action and our negotiations team for securing this victory in our Tube dispute.

“Without the unity and industrial power of our members, there is no way we would have been able to make the progress we have.

“We still remain in dispute over outstanding issues around pensions and working agreements and will continue to pursue a negotiated settlement.”