Train drivers have accepted a pay deal that will see the end of more than two years of strike action in England, Scotland and Wales.
Aslef union members accepted an offer which included a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022-23, a 4.75% rise for 23-24, and a 4.5% increase for 24-25.
Train Drivers Accept Pay Deal
The package had been agreed by union officials and the government in August, but required the backing of members in a vote.
Industrial action has caused severe disruption on the railways since strikes began in 2022.
Aslef said its members voted by 96.6% in favour of a deal. The turnout was 84%.
The breakthrough heralds the end of industrial action with 16 train operating companies in England which saw drivers stage 18 strikes and take part in several overtime bans, leading to cancelled services.
Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said this was the end of the longest train drivers’ strike in history.
“It was not a fight we sought, or wanted. All we sought after five years without a pay rise, working for private companies who, throughout that period, declared millions of pounds in profits and dividends to shareholders, was a dent in the cost of living,” he said.
A crucial part of the deal is that there will be no changes to working conditions.