British railway workers observe their third day of strike of the week on Saturday, after Tuesday and Thursday, in a dispute which concerns employment and wages in the face of record inflation for 40 years which is hitting the United Kingdom.

Only one in five trains should run and half of the lines will be closed, according to traffic forecasts.

This is limited to a time slot from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Disruptions are still expected on Sunday.

The RMT union, which has called for a strike, is demanding wage increases in line with inflation, but also denounces the prospect of "thousands of layoffs" and the deterioration of working conditions.

"In a modern economy, workers need to be properly rewarded for their work, provided with good conditions, and given peace of mind that they won't lose their jobs," said the organization's general secretary, Mike Lynch. , warning that the movement could spread for lack of agreement.

Boris Johnson's government offensive against the strike

From Kigali, where he was taking part in the Commonwealth summit, Prime Minister Boris Johnson estimated on Sky News that the British "have the right to expect basic reforms", in particular in the face of "practices that no one defends except union leaders". .

His government announced this week its intention to change the law to allow the use of temporary workers to replace strikers and reduce the impact it considers "disproportionate" of the strikes.

For his part, Transport Minister Grant Shapps accused the RMT on Twitter of "harming the lives of people who work hard every day", while this strike is the largest in the sector for 30 years.

This week's strikes are an estimated £150m (€174m) loss to the sector.

Faced with the cost of living crisis, discontent is intensifying and strikes are also planned this summer among British Airways ground staff at London's Heathrow airport, some lawyers, and could also extend to teachers, postal workers or in health.

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