Train commuters. could be facing more headaches soon with more industrial action on the cards from mid next week. After a truce over the Christmas/New Year period, rail workers are restarting their campaign for a pay rise.
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00:00As industrial action by rail workers rolls into the new year, passengers' patience is
00:09wearing thin.
00:10They have to fix it quick because it's hard for us.
00:15It's always late and I'm late for work.
00:18Not everyone is sympathetic to the workers' plight.
00:21I think they're overdoing it.
00:22I think the public now are getting sick of it.
00:25It's not as if they're in the poorhouse.
00:28Others think the government isn't doing enough to reach a deal.
00:32The government needs to listen to them and give them what they want or at least come
00:35to an agreement.
00:36I understand their frustrations.
00:38Pay them more.
00:39The cost of living is going up.
00:40After calling off their threat to strike on New Year's Eve, the union says the festive
00:44season ceasefire is over.
00:46Unfortunately, since that ceasefire got called on Christmas Eve, we've heard nothing from
00:53neither Sydney Trains Transport for NSW or the state Labor government.
00:58The RTBU is set to begin a new round of industrial action mid-next week, just when more workers
01:04will be returning to the office.
01:06It insists it won't cause major disruption but could see some slower trips and have flow-on
01:11effects.
01:12As much as they're labelled as strikes, they certainly aren't.
01:17Meanwhile, Unions NSW has written to the government asking for former Sydney Trains CEO Howard
01:22Collins and senior transport executive Samantha Abidirah to be called in as circuit breakers
01:28to lead intensive meetings aimed at ending the standoff.
01:32The pair previously helped the former state government out of a jam in 2022 when they
01:36helped broker a deal over a stout about the new intercity train fleet.
01:40But the government says the best way to resolve this standoff is in the Fair Work Commission,
01:45where mediation is set to resume again on Friday.
01:48Business groups are continuing to count the economic cost.
01:52Businesses have had enough.
01:53They want this matter resolved as soon as possible.
01:56The whole dispute is costing Sydney and NSW millions of dollars.
02:01Transport for NSW says passengers should continue to plan ahead.