Railway passengers in the United Kingdom have been hit by disruptions due to train drivers' strike.
Thousands of employees of nine railway companies are demanding better pay and working conditions.
Al Jazeera's @Harry Fawcett reports from central London.
one of london's busiest stations closed
for business for the unlucky if constant
stream of would-be travelers arriving at
london houston the same story confusion
disappointment the hasty remaking of
plans but at a time when so many are
struggling with the mounting cost of
living notably little condemnation of
the striking rail workers people clearly
aren't listening and working plus people
are saying we can't afford it so maybe
this will help it's a shame but i think
for the greater good has to be done yeah
hopefully it does help after a rail
holiday through europe shawn's
frustration was with the rail companies
as he and his friends struggled to get
home to dublin
this was plans you know it wasn't they
didn't decide to not turn up to work
today so this absolutely could have been
avoided planned around alternatives
offered or at the very least they could
have delisted the trains for today
thousands of rail workers belonging to
the azlef union went on strike on
saturday leaving no services in some
parts of the country or greatly
diminished elsewhere it's the latest and
far from the last in a summer of
transport strikes long simmering
disputes compounded by a cost of living
crisis
what we're now saying is many other
groups and many other sectors saying
across the whole of the uk is now we
need a cost living increase but against
the background of that then the
companies have signed a contract with
the government apparently whereby they
can't offer more than two percent
without the government say so with
passenger numbers and revenues still
well short of pre-pandemic levels the
rail delivery group which represents the
train companies says any pay rises will
have to be paid for
it says unions need to agree to
modernized working practices more
incorporation of sundays into the
regular working week and higher
productivity from each driver's shift
but this is about more than just the
rail industry strikes have taken place
or are planned across numerous sectors
the government has worried that high
wage awards could embed the inflation
that it hopes will relent once the
pressures from ukraine and from the
pandemic start to ease but those
pressures have already hit hard in
households across the country
there'll be still more disruption next
week another major rail union is calling
for tens of thousands of workers to walk
off the job on thursday and saturday
harry fawcett al jazeera london
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