October Scotrail strikes called off after progress in pay talks
Unite says it has reached a verbal agreement on pay for engineers
Two 24 hour strikes on Scotrail this month have been called off after signs of a breakthrough in a pay row with engineers, with the Unite union announcing it has reached a verbal agreement on a deal.
Strikes on the 18th and 19th won't go ahead, but the other dates which could hit services during the Cop26 summit are still in place for now.
Regional Officer Pat McIlvogue tweeted: "Unite has met with Abellio Scotrail several times this week around our pay dispute. Talks were the most progressive in any of the last 18 months. Talks have concluded with Abellio Scotrail tabling a verbal offer, which we are still waiting to receive formally"
"Unite will consult our members in a consultative ballot once we receive that offer. In the spirit of goodwill, Unite has agreed to suspend our actions short of strike, and strike action on 18 and 19 October."
"All other strike dates afterwards are of course contingent on the ballot result over pay".
Other 24 hour walk outs are planned for 1-2 November, 10-11 November, and 12-13 November.
Scotrail is also caught up in a long-running dispute with the RMT about overtime pay for conductors which has been causing severe reductions to services since March.
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