10 June 2016
RMT Press Office
New polling shows that overwhelming majority support retaining guards on ScotRail trains
New polling released today shows that the overwhelming majority want to see guards retained on ScotRail trains and are seriously concerned at the impact on passenger safety of rolling out Driver Only Operation (DOO) across Scotland.
ScotRail have claimed this week that the guards industrial action vote “...is a clear signal for the RMT that our people in Scotland want to decide their own way forward…” but the latest Opinium poll conducted for the RMT shows the travelling public in Scotland, like the rest of the UK, have already made up their minds about the removal of guards on trains and that the public are opposed to the company shift to DOO.
The majority of Abellio ScotRail weekly users (60%) would oppose the plans to remove guards from the service so that it became a driver only operation. This increases to 68% of those who use the service once a week.
Three quarters (73%) are concerned about the safety of travelling on trains that no longer had an on-board train guard and 77% believe Abellio Scotrail should not allow trains to operate without at least one member of staff assisting passengers and protecting their safety.
That figure rises to 84% of women passengers who also said by 82%, that they would be concerned about the safety of travelling on trains that no longer had an on-board train guard/ conductor.
Frequent uses who travel every day support ending privatisation and bringing Abellio ScotRail back into public ownership in Scotland by 82%, as do 70% of the regular passengers as a whole.
RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said;
“ScotRail have made ludicrous claims this week about the RMT ballot which delivered a 75% vote for action on a 75% turn out – a result that beats even the most rigid thresholds on strike ballots being dreamt up by the hard right and their corporate backers.
“Now we know from this latest polling that the public overwhelmingly support retaining the guards on ScotRail services and instead of handing out lectures about democracy and self-determination the company should start listening to what the passengers who pump up their profits are saying about this attack on safety.”
The polling data can be downloaded here
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Tagged with: ScotRail, Guards, Poll
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