RMT Strike Over 32-hour Week Set to Hit Tube Services
Impact on passengers likely to be felt over five days
The RMT on the march
September 3, 2025
London Underground passengers face a week of disruption next month as RMT union members prepare to stage rolling strike action over pay, working hours and fatigue management.
Unless talks between the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) and London Underground (LU) make progress, the walkouts are expected to severely limit services between Sunday 7 and Thursday 11 September.
Key dates of disruption:
- Friday 5 and Saturday 6 September – No impact expected.
- Sunday 7 September – Limited services across the Tube, ending early. Passengers advised to finish journeys by 18:00.
- Monday 8 to Thursday 11 September – Little to no Tube service expected. Any trains that run will start after 08:00.
- Tuesday 9 and Thursday 11 September – No Docklands Light Railway (DLR) service due to a separate dispute.
- Friday 12 September – No Tube service before 08:00, with a normal timetable expected later in the morning.
- Thursday 11 to Sunday 14 September – Some bus services in west, northwest and southwest London may be affected by separate strike action.
Other TfL services including the Elizabeth line, London Overground and Trams will operate, but are likely to be extremely busy. Roads and alternative routes are also expected to face heavy congestion.
The RMT is seeking improvements in pay, rostering and shift patterns, as well as a reduction of the contractual working week from 35 to 32 hours.
General Secretary Eddie Dempsey said fatigue and extreme shift rotations are “serious issues impacting our members’ health and wellbeing” and accused LU management of failing to address long-standing concerns.
TfL has offered a 3.4% pay increase and says it has acted on previous commitments around staff benefits and overtime. It has rejected the call for a shorter working week, arguing this is “neither practical nor affordable”.
Claire Mann, TfL’s Chief Operating Officer, said, “We urge the RMT to call off this action, which will only disrupt Londoners. We want them to continue to engage with us and put our fair, affordable pay offer to their members.”
The strike comes against the backdrop of previous disputes over pay and conditions on the Tube, with last-minute interventions by the Mayor of London sometimes preventing walkouts in the past.
Unless there is a breakthrough in negotiations by Friday night, it may be logistically impossible to call off the strike—even if an agreement is reached over the weekend—due to the scale of operational planning involved. TfL has urged the union to allow its members to vote on the current pay offer, but the RMT has not indicated any intention to do so at this stage.
Michael Roberts, Chief Executive of London TravelWatch, said, “Strikes on public transport are a huge inconvenience for passengers. We urge all sides to work together and head off the threat of next week’s industrial action, but it looks like people should expect widespread disruption.”
TfL is advising passengers to check its website for live updates, plan ahead, and consider walking or cycling for shorter journeys.
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