Crippling delays, cancellations set to worsen across Sydney’s train network

Work bans at the Rail Operations Centre at Green Square, as well as go-slows by drivers on some sections of track where they can usually travel at more than 80 km/h, compounded the delays.

Longland also warned of potentially lengthy delays on the Central Coast and Newcastle line because safety-critical work planned from midday on Wednesday at Gosford had not started.

“If this action continues in the coming days, we will see similar levels of impact, and potentially it may get worse on Thursday and again on Friday,” he said.

The ETU said in a statement that it was disappointed at the government’s pay offer, and workers would continue taking protected industrial action to bring it back to the bargaining table.

The government has offered rail workers a 13 per cent pay rise over four years, as well as a 1 per cent increase from savings from the merger of Sydney Trains and regional operator NSW Trains, and 1 per cent from legislated super increases. It is still substantially less than a 32 per cent pay rise over four years that the six rail unions have been pressing for since the middle of last year.

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However, Haylen said it was the “final pay offer” from the government and represented a significant increase in wages and a “way forward to resolve the dispute”.

Premier Chris Minns is expected to return from holidays on Thursday to manage the fallout from the dispute.

The government has asked rail unions to give it an in-principle response by Thursday, and it intends to put the offer to a vote of the 13,000-strong rail workforce in the coming weeks.

Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) president Craig Turner said a major problem with the government’s offer was the removal of a risk assessment clause inserted in the enterprise agreement in 2022. “Our members were incensed when they put that up,” he said.

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The Coalition’s industrial relations spokesman, Damien Tudehope, said commuters had been left stranded and held hostage by the RTBU and ETU. “Jo Haylen’s apologies are now as predictable as Sydney’s train delays: rolling in late, offering nothing new, and leaving commuters stuck with the mess. The unions are running the show, and her leadership is nowhere to be seen,” he said.

After a Christmas and New Year truce, the RTBU restarted 10 major work bans on Wednesday, including the go-slow, a ban on members working with contractors, and another that prevents work to reinstate train services if they have been cancelled.