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Fares not fair : ticket prices rising 3 times faster than wages

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The government is committed to increases on regulated fares for 2013 and 2014 at 1% above inflation. With the additional 5% that train operating companies can add to some routes, regulated fares such as peak time and season tickets in many parts of the country could rise by over 20% in the next three years.

Everyday thousands of people across the North East use the rail network to commute to work. The inflation figure for July is announced tomorrow which will be the figure used to calculate next year's rail fare increases. Yet again, passengers are going to be stung for increases in ticket prices between 4% and 9%. This will see rail fares continue to rise over three times faster than wages.

Rail travel should be a public service that links our communities and is accessible to all. Privatisation has proved a costly and wasteful mess and public ownership is the only sustainable way of delivering a public service with cheaper fares.

In the last three years we have seen an increase in below inflation pay rises, pay freezes and a real terms drop in wages. Some households are up to £1200 worse off a year as a result. Wages are stagnant, yet prices, particularly of family essentials such as food, fuel and energy, keep on rising - and for those of us who rely on the rail network so too have travel costs.

In conjunction with lobbying to keep our railways public and in turn delivering a cost-effective option for users, the TUC continues to campaign to improve pay. We would like to see more public and private sector employers reaching agreements on the living wage with trade unions in a bid to secure better terms and conditions for employees - as well as much-needed cash into our economy.

Last week there was some good news for Churchill Cleaners contracted to work on the Tyne and Wear Metro system; they secured a major victory at an Employment Tribunal held in Newcastle upon Tyne after their union, RMT, took up the case. The judgement will bring a dramatic improvement in cleaners' terms and conditions on the Metro as for the first time they will receive double time for working Bank Holidays, a day in lieu and time and a quarter for working Sundays. However, they will still be paid the minimum wage whilst private contractor Churchill cleaners allows board room executives to cream off profits for their own pay packets.

In light of the forthcoming rail fare increases, it will be interesting to see whether these workers will receive a travel pass to get to work (a benefit their other colleagues enjoy) and be awarded a living wage to bring them out of in-work poverty. We urgently need to end the culture of low pay in the North East and a living wage would be a good start.

Britain needs a pay rise.

Beth Farhat

Regional Secretary

Northern TUC

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