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14 News The ASLEF JOURNALREGULATOR ‘CONCERNED’ ABOUTNR CUTBACKSThe rail regulator, the Office of Rail Regulation(ORR, last month raised ‘significant concerns’about Network Rail's maintenancerestructuring plans which ASLEF claimsthreatens safety and could cost 1,500 joblosses.The ORR said that on the London toScotland West Coast Main Line not all the‘technological and procedural changesnecessary to support the new maintenanceregime had been implemented’. It added thatclassifying vital safety roles and tasks as ‘nonproductive’means there is a risk of localmanagers cutting back on site lookouts andsafety briefings.ASLEF general secretary Keith Norman said,‘The rail regulator has joined staff and unionsin condemning the Network Rail cuts. That isbecause we are concerned with safety. Thoseapplauding the cuts - basically thegovernment and Network Rail itself - areconcerned with money. Who do you thinkLATE ARRIVAL FOR NEW CARRIAGESASLEF is concerned that the governmenthas postponed a £7.5 billion contract toupgrade the rolling stock on the EastCoast and Great Western lines followinganxieties over the state of the publicfinances until after the election.Transport Secretary Lord Adonis hasordered an independent review of thedeal for 1,400 new carriages.passengers will side with? Or don't they matterin today's rail industry?'TRAIN CRASH IN BELGIUMThe union sent a message of support andsolidarity to our sister unions in Belgiumexpressing our sympathy and support forthem in the wake of the crash near Halle whichlast month claimed the lives of 18 peopleincluding one of the train drivers. The otherremains in a critical condition.Keith Norman passed on ASLEF’s deepestsympathy to all those having friends, relationsor work colleagues involved in the crash atHalle earlier this week, saying, ‘At times likethese our nationality is unimportant. Thenames on the sides of our trains areimmaterial. The uniforms we wear are of noconsequence. We are part of a global family oftrade unionists and rail workers.’SECURE FUTURE FOR UNIONLEARNING PROJECTThe future of the ASLEF ‘Proud to Educate’ lifelonglearning project is secure followingsuccessful bids for financial backing.Last month the union secured £150K in Wales to set up a unionlearning project obtained an additional £35k in Scotland towork within the freight companies; and had news of a successful bid for £525Kfrom the English Union Learning Fund(ULF).It was also decided to change the namefrom ‘Proud to Educate’ to ‘ASLEF – Education’to reflect our objectives more clearly. For moreinformation on ASLEF learning projectscontact Shirley Handsley by phone on 07739473 174 or by email atshirley.handsley@aslef.org.ukASLEF SCOTTISH LEARNINGASLEF in Scotland has recently opened itseighth workplace learning centre, inEdinburgh Waverley, making a total of nine ifwe include the main hub at Stow College inGlasgow.CHINA HASFASTEST TRAINCHINA has unveiled the world's fastesttrain – which can reach speeds of245mph. The new system connectsGuangzhou and Wuhan at an averagespeed of 217mph - and it took just fouryears to build.The super-high-speedtrain reduces the 664-mile journey to justa three-hour ride and cuts the previousjourney time by more than seven-and-ahalfhours. The average for high-speedtrains in Japan is 150mph while in Franceit is 172mph.The Rail Union Learning Centre in InvernessRailway Station has provided education forwell over 100 rail union members, says JimBaxter. The most popular have been twostages of computing, a literacy course ran aspart of a ‘Earn as You Learn’ scheme in whichScotRail staff are paid overtime for theirattendance, and more recently a ‘Spanish forBeginners’ course. ASLEF is now taking thesame learning model to Fort William, Obanand Mallaig.PROGRESSIVE LONDONCONFERENCE 2010ASLEF had a prominent presence atProgressive London’s 2010 Conference as asponsor of the event and the union led asession on ‘Cut Fares Not Investment’ withAssembly Member Valerie Shawcross andSteve Hart from Unite.Progressive London was initiated by KenLivingstone in 2008 as a ‘cross-party, multicommunityforum involving politicians, artists,trade unionists, and campaigners to promotesocial progress in the capital.’Don'tletitcostyou your job!✗
ASLEF's Open Freight ForumsADVANCE NOTICEThe union is organising two open freightforums to discuss, debate and informASLEF's freight strategies.Join fellow members atDoncaster Trades and Labour Clubon Wednesday 31 March 2010 at 11 amBristol Marriot Hotel, Lower Castle Streeton Wednesday 7 April 2010 at 11 amMore thanjust a union
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