RAIL passengers face further disruption to services this Easter weekend as ScotRail staff take strike action.
RMT have confirmed a second day of industrial action on Sunday following a dispute with ScotRail over overtime payments for conductors.
The rail operator says the move comes “in the middle of the biggest financial crisis in its history”.
While the union has accused ScotRail of "slandering their own staff", after rail bosses previously made comments about employees taking action during the pandemic and disrupting services for key workers.
The first of six consecutive Sundays of walkouts organised by RMT took place last weekend, with several services on key routes to be cancelled again on Easter Sunday.
This includes;
Aberdeen: Glasgow/Edinburgh, Inverurie/Inverness,Perth/Dundee.
Edinburgh: Inverness/Aberdeen,Inverkeithing/Glenrothes/Kirkcaldy/Perth/Dundee, Stirling/Dunblane, Tweedbank, North Berwick, Glasgow Central via Shotts.
Glasgow: Edinburgh via Falkirk High, Anniesland, Stirling/Alloa/Dunblane/Perth/Dundee, Inverness/Aberdeen, Cumbernauld, Alloa ,Barrhead/Kilmarnock/Dumfries/Carlisle, Stranraer, Crainlarich/Oban/Fort William/Mallaig.
Inverness: Aberdeen/Edinburgh/Glasgow, Kyle of Lochalsh/Wick.
There will be limited bus services for key workers to University Hospital Hairmyres in East Kilbride, Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline and Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy.
If your journey is going to be affected by @RMTUnion’s strike action on Sunday, you can travel either the day before, or day after the strike action. Alternatively, a refund is available.
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) April 1, 2021
David Simpson, ScotRail operations director, said: “A strike about an increase in overtime pay in the middle of a global pandemic is wrong, and is forcing many key workers to find alternative and much less convenient ways of travelling to work.
“The railway is in the middle of the biggest financial crisis in its history and the Government has made it clear there is no extra money available over and above the nearly half a billion pounds in emergency funding we have already received.
“The people who will suffer most because of this strike are those key workers who depend on trains to get into work to perform their life-saving duties.
“Rather than taking action that puts people off using the railway, we all need to work together to attract more passengers to our services and start getting money in the door again.
“That’s the only thing that will provide genuine long-term job security for our staff.”
RMT say relations with ScotRail have been further poisoned this week with the offer of what amounts to little more than a pay freeze.
RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said: “I have no doubt that our ScotRail members will continue to show full support and stand shoulder to shoulder during the days of industrial action exactly as they did last Sunday.
“Abellio ScotRail is a company that has opted to declare war on their staff rather than recognising the issues at the heart of this dispute and the company have resorted to disgraceful mud-slinging and deliberate provocation.
“Staff at the front-line who have put themselves at huge risk during this pandemic will take no lectures from company bosses who have kept themselves well clear from danger and who are now seeking to squeeze every last penny out of the dying months of this franchise.
“Those profits and fat management fees are being extracted off the backs of their staff and RMT have made it clear that we will not allow ScotRail to divide the workforce in this cavalier fashion.
“All we are demanding is that ScotRail do what is fair and honour an enhanced rate for rest day working for all grades.
“The union remains available for meaningful talks aimed at settling this dispute.”
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