The Rail, Maritime and Transport union announced on 6 November that London Underground drivers will stage eight separate 24-hour strikes between 26 November 2026 and 25 February 2027 in a dispute over proposed changes to shift arrangements, including a four-day working week.
The RMT said the walkouts will take place on 26 November, 17 December and 19 December 2026, then on 4 January, 6 January, 17 February, 23 February and 25 February 2027. The union said the action is in response to Transport for London plans to alter drivers’ wrist conditions, which the RMT described as likely to increase hours actually spent driving, make working days longer and more unpredictable, and pave the way for hundreds of job cuts.
Strike dates and union demands
The RMT said its members are seeking a 32-hour week spread over four days, which the union said would mean three fewer hours each week for the same salary. The union has framed its campaign as a defence of current shift arrangements, arguing that the proposals being advanced by TfL would, in practice, worsen conditions for many drivers.
About half of London Underground drivers are members of the RMT, the union said. Many of the other drivers are represented by Aslef. Aslef said it was surprised by the RMT action. Finn Brennan, Aslef’s full-time organiser on London Underground, said that the voluntary four-day week on offer would give drivers an extra 35 days off a year on rosters based on a 34-hour week, in return for changes including electronic rather than paper based booking on.
TfL response and likely disruption
Transport for London said the proposed switch to a four-day week would be voluntary and that it would mean drivers working fewer hours overall. TfL said that under its proposals most drivers would see their working week reduced from 36 hours to 35 hours, and that contractual hours would remain unchanged because paid meal breaks would be introduced.
Nick Dent, TfL’s director of customer operations for London Underground, said drivers choosing to remain on a five-day week would be guaranteed to stay at the same depot. TfL has not confirmed service by service impact for each strike date.
The RMT’s general secretary Eddie Dempsey said London Underground was, in his words, attempting to dress up a wholesale attack on drivers’ working conditions as a voluntary four-day week. That characterisation was echoed in the union’s announcement of the planned action.
BusinessLDN’s transport programme director Ed Richardson warned that the strikes would hit hospitality in the run up to Christmas and urged both sides to reach agreement. Previous strike action over the same issue in the spring caused significant disruption to services, with some lines entirely closed, the RMT said. The unions and TfL have held talks since, but those discussions have not produced a settlement, according to the RMT.
It is not known whether any of the eight dates will be suspended by further talks. Previous strike calls in this dispute have been called off, and the possibility of last minute changes remains. TfL has not given a detailed breakdown of how services will be affected on each of the announced dates.
Passengers and businesses face a period of uncertainty across late November, the run up to Christmas and into the new year while the dispute continues. The planned strikes follow rounds of negotiation on rostering, hours and the introduction of electronic working practices, matters that unions and management say have significant implications for day to day operations and staffing levels.
Both sides will be expected to continue talks in the coming weeks. If the strikes go ahead on the announced dates, Londoners should expect disruption to Tube services and should check for updates from Transport for London as the situation develops.
