Rail bosses crack down on strikers

The head of the state railways has ordered the dismissal of six staff at Hat Yai station and two leading members of the railway union.

And a State Railway of Thailand source said yesterday more union members were likely to be sacked.

The eight were dismissed over the blockage of railway services in the lower South.

SRT governor Yutthana Thapcharoen issued the order for the dismissal of Thawatchai Boonvisoot, Soravut Porthongkam, Sarote Rakjan, Prachaniwat Buasri, Wirut Sakaekhum and Nitinai Chaiphume on Tuesday. The six work at Hat Yai station. None of them belong to the union and so could be fired straight away.

Mr Yutthana said it was clear the six were in the wrong. They had left their posts without good reason and acted in a way that disrupted normal rail services.

He said their actions carried a serious penalty and they could be punished without an inquiry. However, they could appeal the dismissal order within 15 days.

The six are also prohibited from entering Hat Yai railway station.

Two executive members of the railway union, Pinyo Ruenpet and Banjong Boonnet, will be taken to the Labour Court to hear an application to terminate their employment, Mr Yutthana said.

The two were seen speaking through loud hailers encouraging staff at Bang Sue to stop work on Tuesday, he said.

The SRT will also file a suit with the court demanding 70 million baht in damages from Mr Pinyo and Mr Banjong over the blockage. A court hearing into the case has been set for Nov 26.

The source said the SRT governor decided to go on the offensive starting with action against the six staff and two union members after getting the green light from the government.

The SRT was buoyed by the negative public reaction to the railway stoppage, which caused trouble for passengers, the source said.

The eight had connections with union leader Sawit Kaewwan, he said.

Another four Hat Yai rail staff are under investigation for their alleged involvement in the disruption of train services. If they are found guilty, they also will be punished, the SRT chief said.

Another six union committee members are suspected to be involved in the train blockage. They have yet to be investigated, Mr Yutthana said.

The source said the ultimate target of the SRT was Mr Sawit but the railway agency would check the union and public reaction first before taking action against other union members and leading staff over the stoppage.

Mr Sawit said the union would call a meeting to prepare to fight the court battle and insisted the union did nothing wrong.

He stressed the union's position that locomotives must be repaired to ensure safety. The Khao Tao derailing early this month was proof of that, he said.

Mr Sawit said SRT management had never taken responsibility but shifted the blame to train drivers.

He said the union would propose setting up a tripartite committee to find a long-term solution to the problem. The panel would be made up of members from the union, SRT executives and outsiders.

Meanwhile, all trains in the lower South will resume operations today after talks between Deputy Interior Minister Thaworn Senneam, SRT executives and the Hat Yai railway union. They reached an agreement to break the deadlock during talks in Hat Yai yesterday.

Mr Thaworn said the Hat Yai union had agreed with some conditions to resume rail services.

The union demanded locomotives be repaired and kept in working order, substitute railway staff from Bangkok leave so rail staff at Hat Yai could return to their jobs, and an impartial committee be set up to inspect the conditions of the locomotives and carriages before they are allowed to operate.