Striking Disruptions
The exciting anticipation of Christmas is bubbling in the air with less than two weeks to go. However, attention is turning to what looks like mass disruption caused by strike action. There are several industries from travel to healthcare that are expected to see workers striking during December/January, it is assumed that there will be hundreds of thousands of people striking. These strikes are because of dispute over, pay, jobs, pensions, and conditions. Trade unions are fighting for a better package because of the ongoing cost of living crisis. Inflation is at a 40 year high of 11.1%.
Here's everything you need to know:
Railway strikes
Railway staff from the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) have confirmed strike dates over Christmas and New Year.
Tuesday 13th December 2022 *
Wednesday 14th December 2022 *
Friday 16th December 2022 *
Saturday 17th December 2022 *
Saturday 24th December 2022 (Christmas Eve, from 6pm onwards)
Sunday 25th December 2022 (Christmas Day)
Monday 26th 2022 (Boxing Day, until 6am Tuesday December 27th)
Tuesday 3rd January 2023 *
Wednesday 4th January 2023 *
Friday 6th January 2023 *
The above dates with an * are National Rail strikes, meaning there will be little to no service running across all rail companies nationwide.
The Christmas Eve strike action that begins at 6pm lasting until 6am on 27th will affect Network Rail, although there is still time for this strike to be called off. If members vote for a new pay deal, assuming it swings in its favour. Even if this is called off there are still possibilities of localized strike action, so look out for those.
Royal Mail Strikes
Communication Workers Union (CWU) members have voted to go ahead with strike action over the coming month after having already walked out during black Friday. Royal Mail say they are drawing up well-developed contingency plans as the cost of these strikes have already cost £100 million.
Strike dates in December:
Friday 9th December 2022
Sunday 11th December 2022
Wednesday 14th December 2022
Thursday 15th December 2022
Friday 23rd December 2022
Saturday 24th December 2022
During these dates Royal Mail will not be delivering letters or parcels at any point during the days of strike action. There are exceptions for mail that is deemed special deliveries. Priorities are in place for Covid-19 test kits and prescriptions. We advise posting as early as possible!
Nurse Strikes
This could be the biggest strike of them all, NHS nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are set to carry out the biggest strike in the history of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN). It is thought that 100,000 members from 65 NHS organisations will walk out during December 2022.
Industrial action is taking place on:
Thursday 15th December 2022
Tuesday 20th December 2022
These are said to be in 12-hour intervals (8am-8pm)
These union members are striking in aid of a pay rise 5% above the rate of inflation. As well there is discontent around working conditions.
Ambulance Strikes
The unions involved in the ambulance strike action include Unison, Unite and GMB Union. There are thousands of staff members planning to strike form 999 call handlers to paramedics in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
Strike dates
Wednesday 21st December 2022
Wednesday 28th December 2022
The following areas will be affected:
· South West Ambulance Service
· South East Coast Ambulance Service
· South Central Ambulance Service
· North East Ambulance Service
· East Midlands Ambulance Service
· West Midlands Ambulance
· Welsh Ambulance Service
· Yorkshire Ambulance Service
These specific strikes have arisen from ambulance workers having to turn to food banks. There will be emergency cover during this time as the union are assuring the public that patients come first. There are also dates for 2023 strike in the pipeline.
Road Worker Strikes
Members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) have voted for strike action in December which will continue into January 2023.
The following dates and areas will be affected:
Tuesday 16th December 2022 – North East, North West, Yorkshire
Wednesday 17th December 2022 – North East, North West, Yorkshire
Thursday 22nd December 2022 – London, South East
Friday 23rd December 2022 – London, South East
Saturday 24th December 2022 – London, South East
Friday 30th December 2022 – West Midlands, South West
Saturday 31st December 2022 – West Midlands, South West
Tuesday 3rd January 2023– Nationwide
Friday 6th January 2023 – East Midlands, East England
Saturday 7th January 2023 – East Midlands, East England
Bus Strikes
Abellio and Metroline workers have voted to strike across six days in December.
Strike days:
Thursday 8th December 2022 – Abellio
Friday 9th December 2022 – Abellio and Metroline
Saturday 10th December 2022 – Metroline
Thursday 15th December – Abellio and Metroline
Saturday 17th December – Metroline
Eurostar Strikes
As for the Eurostar, the security staff have voted on strike action over several days in December. This is again because of issues over pay. Members of Mitie and RMT are planning on walking out on the following days:
Friday 16th December 2022
Sunday 18th December 2022
Thursday 22nd December 2022
Friday 23rd December 2022
Airport and Boarder Control Strikes
At Heathrow airport, private contractors who were responsible for employing over 350 ground handlers will walk out for 72 consecutive hours from 4am on Friday 16th December. This is certain to cause disruptions to flights on those days affected.
Wider strikes are also planned across several major UK airports. This is in relation to boarder force workers and the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union disputing issues such as pay, jobs and working conditions. The following strikes are to start on December 23rd until 31st December at the following airports:
· Glasgow
· Gatwick
· Heathrow
· Manchester
· Cardiff
· Birmingham
Uber Strikes
The only talk of Uber strikes is set to be in Bristol on December 16th 2022.
We hope this helps you stay ahead with all things strikes this holiday period. Make sure to keep regularly checking for updates on the above information as there are changes being made daily. Despite these disruptions we hope you have a very merry festive period.