A vote for strike action would see lines deserted

Union members are voting over possible strike action in protest at a new pension scheme being introduced for workers joining the industry.

Network Rail has said the union is "deliberately" trying to create confusion and concern among workers.

The RMT claims the scheme is no better than a "glorified savings plan".

A Network Rail spokesman said: "This campaign of misinformation and scaremongering about railway pensions must stop."

The company said that all existing Network Rail workers would continue to receive the current "generous" final salary pension scheme while new entrants would receive a defined contribution pension.

'Great damage'

Chief executive John Armitt has written to all Network Rail workers to rebut the "false claims" about pensions and to ensure the company's position is made clear.

The company has warned that a strike would cause "great damage" to the railways at a time when it maintained it was delivering service improvements.

An RMT spokesman said Network Rail's accusations of "misinformation and scaremongering" were "nonsense".

"The company has unilaterally imposed a cheaper and inferior pension scheme on new entrants without a word of negotiation," he said. "And it is not just an attack on new entrants, it is also an attack on the existing pension."

Appeal for negotiation

The union says the diminishing number of workers left paying into the final salary scheme will face ever-increasing contributions to maintain their benefits.

"We want the company to talk to us," the spokesman said. "It is refusing to negotiate with us and that is why we are forced into a ballot.

"The company is out to save money by squeezing it out of its workers. If it wants to talk to us about ensuring our members have a bit of security in retirement, it is never too late to call off a strike."