MILITANT Mick Lynch lost his cool yesterday as it emerged rail workers are losing up to £5,000 pay for his strikes.
The £84,000-a-year union chief brought Britain’s trains to a halt amid plummeting support from the public and RMT members for the Christmas chaos costing the economy billions.
Rishi Sunak told Mad Mick — who lost it twice live on air — to cancel the walkouts and not ruin Christmas.
As offices parties were scrapped, and bars and pubs left empty, the RMT hardliner was urged by the PM not to ruin “a precious time for all of us”.
Rishi Sunak also urged Mr Lynch and his mob to “think carefully about their next steps”.
And he turned the screw by noting support among members declined significantly compared to May’s first vote for strike action.
The RMT has rejected a five per cent rise this year and four per cent rise in 2023.
But only 63 per cent of union members rejected the latest pay offer last week, when turnout was 83 per cent.
That compares with 91 per cent who voted to continue striking in November, when turnout was 70 per cent.
Mr Sunak told The Sun: “Two of the other unions (Unite and TSSA) have accepted or recommended that their members accept the offer that the rail employers have put forward. So that’s a good sign of progress.”
And he urged the unions to meet the Government in the middle, after independent pay recommendations had gone further than ministers had “originally planned.”
UNION firebrand Mick Lynch went on two bizarre rants live on air yesterday.
While talking to Richard Madeley on Good Morning Britain, Lynch tried to claim it was not yet Christmas.
He said: “It isn’t Christmas yet. I have no intention of spoiling people’s Christmas.”
But Richard accused Lynch of avoiding his questions and told him to “jog on”.
Lynch also ranted at Mishal Husain on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, accusing her of “parroting” attacks on behalf of the establishment as part of a right-wing conspiracy.
Members at 14 train firms and Network Rail, which owns and maintains railways, are striking.
Since October public support for rail strikes has dipped by eight per cent to 13 per cent, according to a Savanta poll.
And 56 per cent say the workers should not take strike action during the holidays — up four per cent from two weeks ago.
Yesterday defensive Mr Lynch accused the BBC of “parroting” right-wing attacks.
Another clash saw Good Morning Britain’s Richard Madeley tell the firebrand boss to “jog on”.
Network Rail boss Andrew Haines said Lynch’s “heightened aggression” was due to fears he was losing his membership.
Mr Haines said Lynch “is worried that strikes won’t hold for ten days” and “knows he’s got to find a way to do a deal”.
About half of lines were closed on yesterday’s first day of a 48-hour strike.
Walkouts will continue on Friday and Saturday, with two more 48-hour strikes in January.
Ministers point to the £31billion poured into running railways over the past two years, with each household contributing £1,000.
And striking members are down thousands of pounds in lost earnings. The hospitality sector faces a £1.5billion hit in lost sales.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper told ITV News: “The tide of opinion amongst the public is turning. They would like the fair and reasonable offer on the table to be accepted.”
He added: “There isn’t a bottomless pit of money.”
Mr Harper said reforms were needed as some 40 per cent of commuters had not returned after the pandemic.
RAIL workers look set to miss out on up to £5,000 in earnings, industry sources say.
A Network Rail signaller on £44,000 will have lost that in pay and bonuses after 18 days of strike action.
RMT union members who work as on-board train inspectors on around £33,000 are set to lose £2,200.
The RMT chief Mick Lynch earns £124,271 in pay and benefits.
But the union last night insisted his salary is £84,000.
A source said: “This was decided by the union’s AGM. The rest are allowances paid to all officers and staff. The £124,271 includes pension and National Insurance.”
Business Secretary Grant Shapps said: “I think we can all agree the conditions for staff on our railways are pretty good. You can earn £80,000 working on the West Coast main line.”
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