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October 2018
• RMT exposes scandal of unstaffed stations
• Stations north of Queen’s Park left unstaffed
three times per week or more
• Drivers, station staff: prepare to take action
to demand safe staffing!
In August, stations north of Queen’s Park were left either entirely unstaffed for some part of
the d, or “babysat” by CSAs, nearly once per day on average. RMT has put LU on notice that
we will no longer accept the scandal of unstaffed stations. We are gearing up for action if
management refuses to staff our stations. Here’s how the issue affects...

DRIVERS STATION STAFF THE PUBLIC

Unstaffed sta0ons means
there could be no‐one present
to assist you with...
• PTI incidents
• PEAs
• Detrainments
• A person under your train
...or any other incident.
The pracise of “babysiing”
also means that, even if
someone is present, they may
not be a supervisory-grade
member of staff who is fully
trained in liaising with line
control during an incident.
Unstaffed sta0ons put you and
your passengers at risk.
Lone working is already rife on the
Bakerloo North Cover Group.
Unstaffed sta0ons means you
could be the only member staff
between two, three, or even four
sta0ons.
Recently, CSSs and CSMs have
even been asked to travel between
staions, ater their duies, to lock
up.
The non-covering of duies also
means that staff who are on duty
are shorthanded, including when it
comes to tasks like detrainments.
If you are a clear, the non- or
short-staffing of staions means
you could be lone working.
The idea that a terminal sta0on
like Harrow & Wealdstone, with
mul0ple pla/orms, can be run with
just two, one, or even zero
members of staff present is a joke.
During the “Fit for the Future”
cuts programme in 2014, London
Underground displayed posters
promising that “sta0ons [will be]
staffed from first to last trains”.
This was, simply put, a lie.
Staions in outer London are
rouinely let unstaffed.
A disabled passenger requiring
assistance? Forget it. Had an
accident, or been the vicim of
crime, and need to speak to
staff? Tough. Keep travelling.
Simply need to ask a quesion
about the service, or fares and
ickeing? Don’t. If you can’t use
the machines, that’s your fault.
London Underground cares more
about its budget than the welfare
of its passengers.
South Group: cover the duties!
It’s not just at sta0ons north of Queen’s Park where company is
the bosses are refusing to cover du0es. overspending on
Many uncovered duies at Oxford Circus are not overime,
being offered as overime. This leads to other CSAs doesn’t that tell
on duty having to cover the missing staff, adding to us there aren’t
their exising stress and faigue. enough staff in
This pracise is also taking place on other staions the first place?
on the South Group. Our demand
There is an agreed “Business Needs Schemaic” that
(BNS) in place for all staions. The BNS is a staffing management
level set by the company itself, based on their cover all duies
assessment of the number of staff needed to run as per the BNS is
the staion effecively. In almost all locaions, the not a demand for more overime. It’s a demand for
staffing levels specified by the BNS are well below a staffing level high enough to ensure duies are
where RMT would like them to be. But the company covered!
tells us the BNS is fixed; whenever we have roster RMT has told Bakerloo bosses that if they cannot
consultaions, the bosses tell us we can only consult commit to covering duies, we will be in dispute.
on the specifics of the roster, not the underlying This could mean a ballot for industrial acion across
staffing level (i.e., the BNS) it’s based on. the South Group to demand properly staffed
So when it suits them, the BNS is a sacred staions.
document that is absolutely fixed. But when it This issue is widespread across the combine, and
comes to covering duies... it turns out the BNS is we hope that union members on other sta0on
just a guideline. groups will follow our example.
The main excuse given for not covering all duies is
that the overime budget is maxed out. If the

Vote Michelle Rodgers Your branch meets on

RMT Bakerloo Line branch has
nominated Michelle Rodgers in the
forthcoming Na0onal President
elec0ons, and encourages all branch
members to vote for her. Ballots will
be delivered from 1 October. If you
haven’t received a ballot by 8
October, speak to your local rep.
The key principles of Michelle’s
campaign are:
DEMOCRACY
Ensuring all members can have their
say; holding naional officers to
account to make sure democraic
decisions are carried out; making the
union’s culture more open and
paricipatory.
EQUALITY
Fighing for equality within the union
and in society; supporing women,
BAME, LGBT, and disabled members’
commitees to improve diversity and
representaion within the union.
SOLIDARITY
Any group of members who want to
take acion will be supported, not
discouraged or held back.
the FIRST TUESDAY of
every month, 16.00,
upstairs at The Royal
Exchange, 26 Sale
Place, W2 1PU (Edgware
Road H&C). All
members welcome.
The Regional Council meets on
the LAST THURSDAY of every
month, 16.30, at the 12 Pins, next
to Finsbury Park station.
Bakerloo News is a monthly
newsletter from the Bakerloo
branch of the RMT union.
To submit a story for Bakerloo
News, or to contact the branch,
please email
jimmcdaid36@gmail.com, or ring
Branch Secretary Jim McDaid on
07917 131692