In a response to long-standing conflicts regarding the role of conductors on the UK’s Southern Railway, the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union has scheduled a series of strikes to take place over the holiday season. The first strike will begin early morning Friday. Southern’s owners, the Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), have reacted angrily, stating that the RMT has effectively cancelled Christmas for anyone reliant on the trains because of the proposed strikes. GTR has threatened in the past that they will withhold pay from conductors who refuse to work during their shifts.
See "Southern Rail Strikes Set for Christmas and New Year’s Eve", BBC News, November 3, 2016