Eurostar insists its services would not be disrupted

Customer service agents and platform staff at the cross-channel train operator could walk out during the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Eurostar said its services would not be affected by the strike and has described the action as "pointless".

The dispute is over pay differentials between workers in London and Kent, the union said.

Workers are no longer prepared to accept low pay and indefensible pay differentials Bob Crow RMT union leader

The union also claims that workers earn "scandalously" low pay.

"The company needs to come up with proposals that end low pay, and do away with a pay system that allows staff at Ashford to be paid �4,000 less than colleagues doing the same work at Waterloo," union leader Bob Crow said.

Starting salaries for some workers have remained at about �13,000 for the last decade, he said.

"Workers are no longer prepared to accept low pay and indefensible pay differentials between people doing identical work in different locations."

No impact

The dates for the strike action are expected to be made public by the end of the week, though Eurostar said its customers should not be concerned about disruptions during the Bank Holiday.

Eurostar plans to run eight extra services from London to Paris and Brussels during the weekend in response to "huge demand" from customers, director of communications Paul Charles said.

"All of our services will operate normally," he said, insisting that as a "model employer" Eurostar pays much higher salaries to check-in staff than airlines do.