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Further chaos for commuters

BUSINESS commuters in the region face more upheaval with the announcement that staff at Northern Rail are to strike in a row over bank holiday pay.

The Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said about 1,000 members would take part after voting for industrial action, which will take place on the 27 and 28 December.

It reportedly wants conductors to receive double pay for working on the bank holidays.

Northern Rail told the BBC it was disappointed by the strike.

It also said it would run a limited service on some routes.

The train operator serves many northern cities including Newcastle, York, Carlisle, Manchester, Liverpool, Preston, Leeds and Sheffield.

It said the pay for bank holidays had been agreed with the union several years ago, after conductors traded double pay for other benefits including increased salaries and extra annual leave.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .