LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Following a series of talks led by the UK Department for Transport to resolve the pay dispute between drivers and train companies in England, ASLEF, the train drivers' union, agreed to recommend a new pay proposal to its members.
If the union members vote yes, it will end the two-year pay dispute during which drivers went on 18 days of national strike as well as refused to work non-contractual overtime.
The dispute - the longest in the recent history of Britain's railways - prolonged after the previous government and the privatised train companies refused to give train drivers an increase in salary after the last pay deals expired in 2019.
The offer made to ASLEF is a 5 percent pay rise for 2022/23, 4.75 percent for 23/24, and 4.5 percent for 24/25. The offer will now be put to ASLEF members in a referendum.
ASLEF's general secretary Mick Whelan said the deal would be put to union members 'with a recommendation for them to accept.'
'The offer is a good offer - a fair offer - and it is what we have always asked for, a clean offer, without a land grab for our terms & conditions,' he added.
The long-running rail dispute had seen services disrupted for more than 2 years.
New industry estimates show that railway suffered a revenue loss of around £850 million ($1,093 million) due to the strikes since June 2022.
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