Millions of UK commuters are set to face disruption in rail services after members of the RMT union voted in favour of a strike in a pay and job security dispute with rail infrastructure operator Network Rail (NR).
Around 10,000 of the 16,000 members working for NR voted a turnout of 60% and 92% voted for action short of a strike.
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RMT has rejected the latest NR pay proposals as falling well short of what is required to maintain the living standards, the job security and the working conditions for nearly 16,000 staff across NR operations and maintenance.
Talks through Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) failed to produce enough movement from NR, leaving the union with no alternative but to move to the national industrial action vote.
RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: "Our members have today decisively rejected the pay package offered by Network Rail. This is a massive mandate for action and shows the anger of safety-critical staff across the rail network at attacks on their standards of living and their job security.
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"It is now down to NR to start taking this issue seriously, to understand the deep-seated grievance felt by their staff and to come forward with a renewed offer which protects pay and jobs."
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By GlobalDataMembers of RMT had already rejected a four-year pay offer from NR, which included a one-off £500 bonus but no pay rise this year, with salaries then limited to retail-prices-index inflation until 2019.
Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne said: "The railways are a vital public service and industrial action would have a massive impact on millions of passengers as well as freight distribution across Britain. It cannot be right that the unions can hold the country to ransom in this way.
"Our employees have received pay rises eight times higher than other public sector workers over the last four years and have now been offered a deal for the next four years that is unmatched elsewhere.
"Despite the very clear need to modernise our railways, we have offered a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies for the next two years. The unions have also rejected a number of proposals that would boost productivity, removing our ability to offer them more.
"We will do everything we can to keep our railways moving during these times of uncertainty and to stop the RMT from behaving in a way that will cause untold misery to our passengers and will hurt the economy. Fewer than half of RMT members at Network Rail have voted in favour of strike action and we urge union leaders to come back to the table for further discussions."
The RMT leadership indicated it would still be open to talks, despite failure to agree terms at the Acas.
UK Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "I condemn any industrial action that disrupts the travelling public. I want to see Network Rail and the unions back round the negotiating table, hammering out a deal.
"Rail passengers will not thank the unions for inflicting this unnecessary disruption."
