We don't need another reason to oppose privatisation of the metro but if we did...

The victory from RMT cleaners on london underground to secure increased pay (to the London Living Wage / minimum wage) is significant not just as an improvement for those members, but as a message that the "unorganisable" are organisable, that the "weak" sections in the movement can with the right strategy and commitment become the strong sections of our union.

The victory though as many commentators have shown here and here is not perfect by far, does show that privatisation has made it harder to fight, that if services on tyne and wear metro are seperated out as on national rail and the underground, with stations seperate from the companies running the metros themselves, with different employers, then wages will be driven down to make a profit, and it will be the most vulnerable and poorest paid who will suffer.

The fact that the RMT cleaners have won this partial victory is important, but we have a chance in the north east to prevent profiteers from driving down public sector wages, to prevent one group of workers to have one minimum wage, and another a completely different one. All the unions whether they represent drivers, cleaners, station staff, or office staff who work to deliver the Tyne and Wear metro need to plan action now to defend the publicly owned and run unified system and prevent profiteers from driving wages, cutting corners on safety and taking the subsidy that we rightfully expect of public transport and creaming it off as unearned profit for shareholders

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