Manchester RMT and Aslef strikes September 2022: Unions cancel strike action following death of Queen Elizabeth II

Strike action that was due to take place later this month has been cancelled as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabth II.

People in Manchester were due to be impacted by two days of strike action by the RMT and one from Aslef as railway workers continued their protets against pay and working conditions.

However, both unions have announced that their memebrs wil now not go on strike on 15 and 17 September as planned.

Two days of action took place in July, as well as further dates in August by different trade unions in efforts to improve pay and working conditions.

What have the Unions said?

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “RMT joins the whole nation in paying its respects to Queen Elizabeth. “The planned railway strike action on 15 and 17 September is suspended. We express our deepest condolences to her family, friends and the country.”

The offical Aslef Twitter page posted: “In light of the sad news of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, ASLEF is postponing its industrial action on 15th September.

“We express our deepest condolences to her family, friends and the country.

When were the planned days of strike action?

July and August were busy months for strike action, and this looks set to continue into September with several days planned.

The strikes on September 15 and 17 will bring out over 40,000 workers across Network Rail and 14 train operating companies.

Which Manchester rail companies were due to be affected?

Several train companies which operate services through Manchester stations were to be affected by the upcoming strike action.

These include Cross Country Trains, Northern Trains, Transpennine Express, and Avanti West Coast.

Which rail companies are affected by the strike action?

RMT members at 14 train companies were due to strike on 15 and 17 September.

The full list of train companies who were set to strike is listed below:

Network Rail

Chiltern Railways,Cross Country Trains,Greater Anglia,LNER,East Midlands Railway,c2c,Great Western Railway,Northern Trains,South EasternSouth Western RailwayTranspennine Express,Avanti West Coast,West Midlands Trains

GTR (including Gatwick Express)