The RMT has been in dispute with Network Rail for many months A dispute between the RMT and Network Rail that nearly resulted in strike action in the spring appears set to end after both parties agreed a pay deal.
The RMT said it would be recommending that its members accept the deal, which would give them a pay rise of about 7% between now and December 2011.
The maintenance workers would also receive a £2,000 lump sum by Christmas and the deal ruled out any compulsory redundancies, the RMT said.
Network Rail welcomed the agreement.
The dispute centred on plans to axe 1,500 maintenance jobs and change rosters to allow more work in the evenings and at weekends.
A spokesman for Network Rail said: “A positive vote [from RMT members]will allow us to make the changes needed to secure the future of all our people in the new maintenance organisation.”
RMT general secretary Bob Crow said: “At a time when the doom-and-gloom merchants are telling working people that they must accept pay freezes, job cuts and a grim Christmas and New Year, our Network Rail maintenance members have shown that if you stand together in a strong trade union you can win.”
He added: “The package our negotiators have secured on the back of a solid mandate for strike action from our members is a testament to the results that can be achieved by trade unionists who refuse to take a hit for the bankers crisis.”
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