UK : Virgin workers to be balloted for strike action
Workers at Virgin East Coast are being balloted for strike action over jobs and working conditions.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union will start voting next week on
The union said the dispute has been brewing for months, accusing the company of trying to "bulldoze through" cost-cutting measures which would "decimate" jobs.
Virgin Trains East Coast is planning to cut its travel centre staff by 15%,affecting stations between London and Scotland, including Newcastle and York.
Another union - The Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) - said the plans would lead to the loss of 31 travel centre jobs and 15 station staff.
A memo to staff said the centres would be replaced by open plan "customerzones" where staff will advise and help passengers buy tickets through machines and redundancies would be on a voluntary basis, the TSSA said.
Virgin bosses insisted any strike action would not affect customers due to "well prepared contingency plans."
On the travel centre plans, Virgin said it would "fully consult" with the TSSA.