Today (Thursday 28th) we met LU Directors to hear their response to the Trade Union pay claims. Despite the fact that London Underground is generating a huge surplus which is being used to subsidise other parts of the TfL group, management have flatly turned down all elements of every one of the unions demands and have said that they are not prepared to even make a pay offer until we withdraw them ! They claimed that introducing a 4 day, 32 hour week would mean recruiting an additional 1,600 staff, and that a paid meal relief would be equivalent to an 8% pay rise! This is not an argument that we accept. They have also refused to make any improvements in annual leave, Boxing Day payments, travel benefits, maternity and paternity benefits, long service awards and first aid payments or any other working conditions whatsoever , ASLEF made it plain to management that this is an unacceptable approach to negotiations. We have put our claim forward in good faith and it deserves to be seriously discussed not just dismissed out of hand. We will now be reporting to members and branches and are scheduled to meet management again on March 13. There will need to be a serious change in the company’s attitude at that meeting.