Strike continues in UK, railway traffic severely hampered

Affected by rising energy prices and high inflation levels, strikes have been held in many industries in the UK. The nationwide strike of railway, shipping and transport workers in the UK that has lasted for several days is still continuing. On January 7, local time, tens of thousands of railway workers continued to go on strike.

According to reports, the ongoing strike has resulted in only about one-fifth of the trains in British railway transportation still operating normally, about half of the railway service network being interrupted, and railways in most parts of Wales, Scotland and rural England being out of service throughout the day. Network Rail has called on people to reduce "non-essential" rail travel. The union stated that it is still unable to reach a reasonable agreement with the employer, so the railway workers' strike will continue.

The United Labor Union previously stated that British ambulance workers will also go on strike on January 23 to call on the government to resolve wage disputes. In addition, more than 2,600 ambulance workers in Wales and other places will go on strike at the end of January.

When British Prime Minister Sunak met with the heads of British health services on the 7th, he said that the government planned to announce legislation to enable key public services such as ambulances to maintain a minimum level of safe operation during strikes. In addition, Sunak said the day before that he hoped to have a "constructive" dialogue with the unions next week to find a solution to the problem.

British media pointed out that in recent months, the UK has suffered the most serious wave of strikes since the 1980s, leading to severe paralysis in many industries, including health care. After more than a decade of stagnant wage growth, inflation is soaring, leaving many people unable to make ends meet, prompting the strike to continue.