2026 Pay Award

[officewalla]

Ah yes, the elephant in the room. Harmonisation of pay and conditions. Certainly not a given I'd have thought.

Not a quick process and fully expect the DfT to attempt a drive to the bottom rather than harmonise towards the top. It is going to be the Sundays in the working week and staff travel that will cause most issues I suspect. If you are in LNER with your ability to utilise staff travel across more than one ToC and have boxes for first class etc, are you really going to give that up for a priv card and standard class only for you and your +1 on your network only for example?

 

[Straus]

I think they will continue previous staff travel arrangements as a legacy - I've worked at companies before where there were different conditions for different employees after mergers etc and it didn't really cause any issues.

Even within NR there's a mix of safeguarded travel for people with the company for longer and priv travel for newer.

There are also different union arrangements and salary negotiations with NR, so I'd imagine it may continue.

 

[Goldfish62]

You have misunderstood. My point was about big national public sector areas who all have pay review bodies. A national rail organisation will at some point need the same to harmonise pay and some major terms and conditions across the whole company. Of course it will only apply to England for ToC staff as there is nothing great or British about GBR when the devolved governments retain transport responsibilities.

I can only repeat that significant parts of the public sector do not have pay review bodies, which are generally confined to the most senior staff who do not have collective bargaining rights or where the right to strike is restricted or banned. I see no reason why GBR would have a pay review body. The civil service doesn't (apart from the most senior staff). BR didn't. It's for GBR to negotiate with the TUs any future harmonisation of pay and Ts&Cs.

 

[Cowley]

We seem to be straying from the subject and talking about GBR here. That’s probably for a separate thread if anyone wants to set one up?

 

[berni6680]

Any news coming out on the pay talks for general grades at Southeastern.

 

[fodphil]

That seems very generous in the current climate without some big changes to something especially given that last year in my TOC for example, the DfT limited the offer to 3.something% with no strings.

They are one of the lowest paid TOCs

 

[EvoUK]

Eurostar agreed 3.9% for all staff that was backdated to January.

Hi, with the new price rise, what does that take the salary to?

 

[martin2345uk]

Hi, with the new price rise, what does that take the salary to?

Roughly 85 for domestic drivers, 96 for the Paris link and 99 for the Brussels link.

 

[L.M_DannyC]

Is that for general grades?

Drivers. Sorry, should have clarified.

 

[Arussoco]

Edinburgh trams just voted to accept a 2 year deal 4.25% year 1 and 3.25% year 2. The vote only just went through. Puts a topline salary driver on £40900

 

[airantraigh]

Edinburgh trams just voted to accept a 2 year deal 4.25% year 1 and 3.25% year 2. The vote only just went through. Puts a topline salary driver on £40900

I’m surprised it went though considering as well it’s still 4 years for drivers to make top pay

 

[diego1234]

Has London Overground been offered any deal for this year?

 

[martin2345uk]

Hearing GA West side have got a 2 year deal of around 10% plus 9% which is very good, interesting to see if any strings attached to that?

 

[Sleepy]

Hearing GA West side have got a 2 year deal of around 10% plus 9% which is very good, interesting to see if any strings attached to that?

Certainly needed as West have had driver retention issue for a while now. Update: It includes Sundays inside the week !

 

[Hugo3000]

Certainly needed as West have had driver retention issue for a while now. Update: It includes Sundays inside the week !

Doesn't seem that attractive (to me) when you consider most TOCs are giving around 3.5-4% for little or no strings - certainly not such a big change to t&c's.

 

[Horizon22]

Doesn't seem that attractive (to me) when you consider most TOCs are giving around 3.5-4% for little or no strings - certainly not such a big change to t&c's.

A 2 year, 19% pay rise doesn't seem attractive to you?

Interestingly it's good to see a move to a Sunday in the working week, which presumably needed agreement from DfT. GA is under national ownership now so maybe they will finally bite the bullet!

 

[dsc17]

Hearing GA West side have got a 2 year deal of around 10% plus 9% which is very good, interesting to see if any strings attached to that?

Wish GE side got an offer like that
Gone very quiet on the East side of any pay talks

 

[Teddyward]

Wish GE side got an offer like that
Gone very quiet on the East side of any pay talks

An email got sent to all GE depots this morning.

 

[Hugo3000]

A 2 year, 19% pay rise doesn't seem attractive to you?

Interestingly it's good to see a move to a Sunday in the working week, which presumably needed agreement from DfT. GA is under national ownership now so maybe they will finally bite the bullet!

If I was getting 3.6% this year anyway and probably something similar next year anyway, I'd want more than the difference for sacrificing the Sundays - if indeed that's all that's been sold? That's personal preference and I appreciate that others may think differently.

 

[GWR1969]

Have any TOCs settle for 2026 yet and if so what was the settlement?

3.6% offer GWR ..

 

[loudmouth]

Has London Overground been offered any deal for this year?

I think they're still in negotiations

 

[KM1991]

3.6% offer GWR ..

All grades?

 

[GWR1969]

All grades?

Yes

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 Jun 2026 ==

All grades?

Tssa , Unite and Aslef are happy with it RMT are thinking about it

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 Jun 2026 ==

All grades? they want to change notice period from 1 month to 3 months all unions are ok with that but rmt are not sure

 

[berni6680]

Collective grades at Southeastern still have not had an offer as far as I'm aware. Anyone know what the hold up is?

 

[diego1234]

I am hearing that SWR has had their ballot succeed with RMT and Unite, and the backpay is going in the next paydate in May.

What was the deal? Is this for drivers too?

 

[whitby26]

Can anyone tell me the most up to date pay scale for GTR Thameslink please ?

 

[dsc17]

GA Staff been offered 3% without strings or 3.6% with strings

Has anyone heard anymore as the RMT have gone quiet and no one seems to know what's going on !

 

[vikingdriver]

What was the deal? Is this for drivers too?

Not drivers.

 

[Starmill]

Plenty. Executive bodies, non-departmental government organisations, local government, devolved governments. Etc.

Loads of those either are actually part of a pay review body or are tacitly pegged to the recommendations with an adjustment.

Yes there are still some genuine exceptions, absolutely. Just not very many. A specific pay review body for train crew say would actually be a well-justified idea. Which is what the person was getting at.

 

[officewalla]

I can only repeat that significant parts of the public sector do not have pay review bodies, which are generally confined to the most senior staff who do not have collective bargaining rights or where the right to strike is restricted or banned. I see no reason why GBR would have a pay review body. The civil service doesn't (apart from the most senior staff). BR didn't. It's for GBR to negotiate with the TUs any future harmonisation of pay and Ts&Cs.

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/office-for-the-pay-review-bodies NHS, Armed Forces, police, teachers,doctors and dentists, prison service
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-service-pay-remit-guidance-2025-to-2026-html
This guidance covers pay setting arrangements for civil servants throughout the Civil Service, including: Ministerial Departments, Non-Ministerial Departments, and Agencies. It also covers public sector workers in Non-Departmental Public Bodies and Arm’s Length Bodies

Covers almost all public sector workers not just senior staff so why not one for the railways industry? You really should do your homework before dissing a perfectly good suggestion that would bring the industry into line with other big publicly owned organisations.