Posted 6th August 2013 | 6 Comments
Railcare remains in crisis after aid is refused
TALKS with the Government have failed to produce a rescue package for Railcare, according to the RMT union.
152 jobs have already been lost after the firm, based at Wolverton and Springburn, called in administrators last week, and there have been warnings that more redundancies could be announced within the next few days. The RMT is also claiming that the Royal Train vehicles, which are traditionally maintained at Wolverton, could be affected by the crisis as well.
Business secretary Vince Cable has been told that he can’t ‘wash his hands’ of the problems at the rolling stock engineering company. Unions have been calling for an emergency cash injection of around £1 million, but so far without success.
The RMT claimed that the rewriting of the rail franchising timetable following the West Coast collapse was largely to blame, along with delays in finalising the Thameslink rolling stock programme with Siemens. As originally scheduled, the first new trains would have been arriving by now, releasing some of the existing fleet for refurbishment at companies like Railcare before being cascaded to newly-electrified lines in the north west of England.
Both the RMT and Unite were in talks with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills yesterday, where they pointed out that Railcare has a full order book from October, with work for at least the next three to four years set to follow.
The general secretary of the RMT, Bob Crow, said: “Not only are hundreds of jobs and 175 years of railway history threatened by the Government betrayal of Railcare but we now find that the future of the Royal Train is thrown into the mix as well.
“It is also now clear that the cascading of refurbished fleet across the country could end up stalled due to this avoidable chaos, leaving services cancelled for want of the trains that should be passing through the Railcare depots for repair and upgrading. That is a ludicrous situation for us to end up in and is easily resolved with some short term cash flow assistance to get us through the next few weeks before the big orders roll in.
“In our meetings with Government officials RMT has pressed the case for Railcare to be taken into public ownership and for Network Rail to have the chance to run the business. If nationalisation was good enough for the banks when they were in crisis then it should be good enough for the oldest railway works in the world.”
Reader Comments:
Views expressed in submitted comments are that of the author, and not necessarily shared by Railnews.
John Pinkerton, Milton Keynes
It is incredible that a company with a full order book is put into administration and workers are made redundant. The facts will emerge in time, but it isn't highly paid workers who have brought the company to its knees. These situations are planned months in advance and the last people to know are the workers and the first people out the door are the workers. It is not the RMT or any other trade union's job to 'buy-into' a company when it is in crisis. It is the government's job to provide the finance and bale out Railcare; just as they did with our money with our thankless bankers. The same profligate bankers who refuse to put up the money for Railcare now! Railcare is a suitable case for nationalisation. The East Coast mainline,under public ownership, has provided over £600 million in revenue for the government.
One million of that could go to Railcare; save the jobs and save the company.
Anything less is an outrage! It also shows that Thatcherism isn't dead.
Clive, Huddersfield
Surely the RMT will be providing the short term finance needed itself as they believe its such a good bet!
Linda Connor, Milton Keynes
Its disgraceful that workers should be left in limbo this way and having to work without getting paid; theyre in a catch 22 situation; if they dont go to work; they stand to loose everything anyway; even moreso should walk away with their free travel facilities and inconvenience pay; some one should cough up. I hope we win the bloody lottery then all our probs will be solved. Maybe as the Royal train is at Wolverton; the Queen will cough up
Lutz, London
Not sure why only £1M would be sufficient; it sounds like there is more to the problem than just the lack of a bridging loan if receivers have been called in.
Christine Saxton, Uddingston
I sincerely hope that if the Goverment comes up with a rescue package for Railcare that it will include the people who's jobs were brutally snatched from them on Friday. To go into work and to be treated the way they were beggars belief. The whole picture needs to be looked at not just those who remain on the Railcare premises. I do believe that redundancies can be overturned.
Mick Rogers, Cardiff
If £1 million is all that's required to keep Railcare afloat for 2-3 months until business picks up, instead of wasting time bleating at the government, what's to stop the RMT putting its money where its mouth is?