by René Lavanchy
THE RMT union has condemned Tyne and Wear’s Nexus transport executive as “morally bankrupt” and repeated its concerns over its members’ working conditions, as the executive prepares to invite private sector bids to run parts of its Metro rail service this month.
Four candidates including an in-house bid have been shortlisted to take over running of trains and stations from Nexus, which owns and operates Tyne and Wear Metro. The successful bidder is expected to take over in April 2010.
The RMT, which represents some 250 Metro staff and has campaigned to keep the service in the public sector, had said it would ballot its members for industrial action after not receiving guarantees on the security of pay and conditions. But the union said this week that legal restrictions prevented the ballot from going ahead.
RMT regional organiser Stan Herschel said: “It’s quite clear that Nexus are morally bankrupt. We’re utterly convinced that our members would’ve voted for industrial action but we’re not prepared to go to court.
“We want this madness to stop. We’re pressurising councillors and politicians but Nexus are so thick-skinned they’re carrying on regardless.”
The union wants guarantees that its members’ terms and conditions of employment will be maintained in line with the law, and no compulsory redundancies.
A “Keep Metro Public” campaign, which the RMT supports, is backing Nexus’ in-house bid for the contract. But Mr Herschel said: “I’m not too hopeful of the in-house bid. The passenger transport authority certainly doesn’t seem interested.”
A Nexus spokesperson said staff transferred to a private contractor would be entitled to negotiate over pay and conditions in the same way as before, but did not confirm the conditions would be maintained. They added:
“No business in the world can commit to a promise not to make compulsory redundancies at any time in the future… it is unreasonable to demand Nexus or any other employer do so in future.”
