UK: Eurostar security guards plan strike before Christmas

Christmas holidays in the UK are already preparing to disrupt. About 100 security personnel working for the Eurostar railway company will go on strike for four days before Christmas, demanding higher wages in line with rising inflation in the country.

Members of the RMT trade union working for supply company Mitie “will go on strike on December 16, 18, 22 and 23” after a majority vote in favor of the strike, the union underlines in a press release. This social movement will “severely disrupt” Eurostar’s pre-Christmas service, RMT stresses.

Rising inflation in the UK

“Eurostar security guards are essential for the operation” of these trains running between the UK, France, the Netherlands and Belgium, and “it’s a shame they don’t get a decent salary” that “Mitije can afford to pay,” he said. Mick Lynch, General Secretary of RMT. “I ask Mitie and Eurostar to reach an agreement with RMT through negotiations as soon as possible,” he continued.

These four days of strike will be added to other strikes on British rail lines. Rising costs in the UK continue to rise. According to a survey published at the end of October, millions of Britons will refuse to eat due to rising prices, especially for food.

Half of British households are cutting back on meals, according to a survey of nearly 3,000 people. A similar share says they find it difficult to eat healthy compared to pre-crisis times and opt for ready-made meals to cut down on gas or electricity.