Rail strikes are set to disrupt to the FA Cup third round as fixtures are due to be played on dates that have been selected by RMT workers.
More than 40,000 staff over 14 different train operaters are preparing sets of 48-hour strikes over the Christmas and New Year period, including days that clash with one of the biggest days in the footballing calendar.
Not only will there be strikes on December 13 and 14 as well as 16 and 17, there will also be days of strike between January 3 and 4 as well as the first two days of the FA Cup third round on January 6 and 7.
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There are 32 ties to be played across that weekend, including one on Friday, with fixtures ranging from Manchester City Vs Chelsea to Boreham Wood Vs Accrington Stanley. The third round is one of the biggest weekend's in the English schedule due to its historic nature and the fact that lower league sides have the chance to face Premier League teams for the first time.
In football, the Christmas period is often one of the busiest in the calendar due to the amount of fixture congestion, and this year threatens to be no different. Although league action is currently on the back-burner due to the World Cup, there is a run of games early in the New Year that will be heavily effected by strikes up and down the country.
A service will be ran by non-union members and managers between 7:30 am and 6:30 pm across around half the network, but that is unlikely to be enough for the volume of high profile cup football.
RMT said in a statement: “Despite every effort made by our negotiators, it is clear that the government is directly interfering with our attempts to reach a settlement. The union suspended previous strike action in good faith to allow for intensive negotiations to resolve the dispute.
“Yet Network Rail have failed to make an improved offer on jobs, pay and conditions for our members during the last two weeks of talks. At the same time Rail Delivery Group, representing the train operating companies, have also broken a promise to make a meaningful offer on pay and conditions and even cancelled negotiations that were due to take place yesterday.”
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “This latest round of strikes will show how important our members are to the running of this country and will send a clear message that we want a good deal on job security, pay and conditions for our people.
“We have been reasonable, but it is impossible to find a negotiated settlement when the dead hand of government is presiding over these talks. The employers are in disarray and saying different things to different people, sometimes at the same time.
“This whole process has become a farce that only the new secretary of state can resolve. When I meet him later this week, I will deliver that message.”
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