Train drivers in Scotland could strike for the first time in 20 years in row at the new state-owned operator ScotRail.
It is understood that ScotRail offered drivers a 2.2% increase at pay talks yesterday , which union Aslef said did not recognise the financial pressures that many employees were under.
The union has now informed the firm that it intends to enter into a formal dispute over pay, only one month after ScotRail was formally taken back into public ownership.
Any dispute and strike would be embarrassing for the Scottish Government, which has promised a new era for the railway following years of private franchising.
Kevin Lindsay, industrial organiser for Aslef, said: “Aslef members who have kept the country moving throughout the pandemic have been presented with a derisory pay offer from ScotRail management which takes no account of the cost of living crisis workers face.
“Scotland’s train drivers did not make the decision to consider industrial action lightly –indeed we have not had a single pay dispute with Scotland’s railway operators for 21 years.
“Yet just one month into the Scottish Government’s stewardship of ScotRail, we are being left with no option but to consider action in response.
“ScotRail and the Scottish Government must recognise that these key workers deserve a decent pay rise, they should return to the negotiating table with a much fairer deal that recognises the vital work our members do.”
Joanne Maguire, ScotRail’s chief operating officer, said she believed the pay offer was “very good” and described Aslef’s stance as “very disappointing”.
“We have made a pay offer that recognises the hard work of our colleagues and the cost of living challenges faced by families across the country,” she added.
“We are still trying to recover from the pandemic. With customer numbers around a third below pre-Covid levels, it remains a very challenging time for Scotland’s railway."