The train drivers’ union ASLEF has delayed a ballot of its members who work for Southern one day after it started.
Bosses at the train company Southern said that they were told at the weekend that this was down to “technical” reasons.
Southern’s parent company Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) has now called on the guards’ union – the RMT – to abandon its own series of strikes.
Only last week guards or conductors belonging to the RMT walked out for two days – Friday 4 and Saturday 5 November – and announced more strike dates over Christmas and the new year.
Southern’s passenger services director Angie Doll said: “We’re pleased that ASLEF has called off this ballot.
“This welcome development gives us the time and opportunity to sit down with union officials to resolve their dispute.”
The company said that 215 conductors – 96 per cent – had signed up to the new onboard supervisor role and would take up the new role in January.
They will focus exclusively on customer service, the company said, leaving the responsibility of closing the train doors to the driver.
They were given until last Friday (4 November) to agree to transfer to the new job. A further 222 people will remain in their existing roles as conductors on certain Southern services, the company said.
The train company added that it would recruit a further 100 onboard supervisors to work across Southern and Gatwick Express services with an advertising campaign starting this week.
GTR said that its formal offer to the RMT to settle the dispute, which it said had been on the table for three months, had now been formally withdrawn.
According to GTR, a letter confirming this was sent to RMT general secretary Mick Cash on Friday.
The company said that it had warned the union at the start of last week that the offer would be revoked if any further strike action went ahead.
But members went on strike on Friday and Saturday (5 November) while the union prepared for 11 more strike day.
The RMT has called strikes from Thursday 22 December until Christmas Eve and then from New Year’s Eve until Monday 2 January.
The union already had strikes planned for Tuesday 22 November and Wednesday 23 November and Tuesday 6 December to Thursday 8 December.
