The SEP TRAINOSE and PEP TRAINOSE unions are going on a 24-hour nationwide strike on Thursday 26 September, demanding, among other things, immediate recruitment, replacement of rolling stock with modern trains comparable to those of European railways and completion of infrastructure and transport safety projects on the railway network.

In a statement, they point out that “the tragic accident at Tempe, where 11 of our colleagues were among the 57 people who were killed, highlighted the long-standing problems that we face as workers in the railway and the abandonment of the state”.

“The Hellenic Train unions four months ago submitted a series of proposals for the safety of staff and passengers and suspended the mobilizations we had announced to give the new management time to address them,” they said in the statement, adding: “although managers said that safety would be at the top of their priorities, despite their assurances of immediate, medium and long-term interventions, the problems remain here and are making it difficult for our colleagues to work smoothly and safely.”

The union’s full statement reads as follows:

“The tragic accident at Tempe, where 11 of our colleagues were among the 57 people killed, has highlighted the enduring problems faced by railway workers and the neglect of the state.

Besides, the government also admitted that in our country the railway projects and systems related to the safe transport of passengers and freight have been significantly delayed (contract 717, etc.) due to constant changes, extensions, and government interventions.

Unfortunately, just before the completion of the installation and operation of these safety systems (signaling – tele-management – communication), we experienced the devastating bad weather of Daniel, which destroyed a large part of the railway network, creating multiple problems in the movement of passengers and goods, as well as the smooth operation of Hellenic train, with the employees bearing a greater burden than they should have.

Problems that remain after a year and a half of the accident and natural disaster remain, while many of them, involving OSE and Hellenic train, are perpetuated and bogged down. The non-completion of the undergrounding of the line in Athens after 17 years, the delay in the completion of the works at Larissa station, the total lack of modern means of dealing with delinquent passengers, the tragic state of the locomotive depot facilities, the lack of reliable modern rolling stock and, above all, the TRAGIC SHORTAGE OF STAFF, highlight the absence of planning in the operation of the companies, the absence of a governmental plan, the long-standing abandonment of the railway, the ineffective and deliberate changes of all the governments, which are responsible for the mess of incoherence, as well as the closure of 1/3 of the railway network, brought the railway to the tragic situation that we who work on it are experiencing and of course the devaluation of the train to the passenger public.

The privatization of TRAINOSE and then of EESTY for a very small price, which supposedly would have been beneficial, proved in practice to be another wrong political choice, the results of which can be seen with the naked eye.

Aging rolling stock, lack of spare parts, understaffing of the technical base, lack of modern mechanical equipment, outdated facilities, and a host of other problems all add up to our assessment.

Despite the 65 million euros/year of state subsidies, the employees and especially the citizen-passengers of the vehicle do not enjoy modern European-level transport.

But the responsibility for this tragic situation is attributed to all governments and appointed administrations that managed the fate of the country and the railway, which despite billions of European and national funds, its reliability in transport is at its lowest point since its inception.

Today, on the one hand, we acknowledge OSE’s effort to speed up the restoration of the railway infrastructure and the operation of safety systems, as well as the good intentions of the new management of Hellenic train to address the serious problems bequeathed to it by its predecessors, but on the other hand, we note that the choice of outsourcing tasks such as the clearing of trees and other materials on the line by OSE, as well as the outsourcing of technical work due to lack of personnel, is not a good idea.

In short, good intentions alone are not enough to solve the reliability and safety issues… We need immediate interventions, serious investments in personnel, and rolling stock!

Besides, we all know very well that “the road to hell is paved with good intentions”!!!

The Hellenic train unions four months ago submitted a series of proposals for the safety of staff and passengers and suspended the mobilizations we had announced to give the new management time to address them.

Despite management stating that safety would be at the top of their priorities, despite their assurances of immediate, medium, and long-term interventions, the problems remain here and are making it difficult for our colleagues to work properly and safely.

Following all the above mentioned and after the incidents of the last days, our unions, in an extraordinary meeting of their Boards of Directors, decided UNANIMOUSLY to declare a 24-hour nationwide rail strike on Thursday 26 September with the following demands.

b)Immediate actions and implementation of the union’s proposals for the safety of passengers and workers

c)Immediate actions and implementation of the union’s proposals for dealing with offenses on board trains and in stations

d)Replacement of rolling stock with modern trains comparable to European railways – our passengers deserve the best!

e)To provide immediately the PPE (personal protective equipment)

f)To proceed with the training of drivers and technicians on all rolling stock

g)To establish continuous training of the technicians and train attendants

h)Immediate actions for the modernization of the facilities and machinery in the workshops

i)Completion of infrastructure and transport safety projects on the railway network

For all the above requests we demand a clear implementation schedule.

Dear passengers, colleagues

This mobilization concerns us ALL, it concerns you ALL!

The safety of passengers and workers is for us above all!”