The message below was shared with all ITF staff following the last day of work (30 September 2025) for a large number of colleagues departing due to the restructuring process.
Dear colleagues,
As ITF staff we all share a common goal that is meant to guide every decision we make: advancing the rights and wellbeing of transport workers globally. Even when working on an international scale, creating social change is not just about achieving critical mass, it starts with building critical connections. Everything comes back to people.
That’s why it hurts so much to say goodbye to so many talented colleagues who have dedicated years of their lives to the ITF and its mission. It is hard to communicate our immense gratitude for their contributions alongside our profound sadness regarding the circumstances leading to their departure.
Following our strike last month, we continue to meet with management to seek a resolution to our dispute. We are trying to find common ground on the key issues flagged by members when the proposed agreement was voted down on 11 September: avoiding compulsory redundancies, maintaining redundancy protection going forward, and continuing to have a mechanism to ensure salary and grading are handled fairly. These discussions have been constructive and are ongoing.
At the outset of this restructuring process, we raised serious concerns around fairness and equality. We are still waiting for management to provide a revised Equality Impact Assessment (EIA). The initial document did not follow our usual process and failed to meet an acceptable standard, which is to identify and mitigate potential harms before decisions are taken.
Our preliminary analysis of staffing changes to the Unite bargaining unit suggests that 80% of the approximately 40 leavers are women. This is worrying in light of ongoing concerns regarding gender inequality in our workplace.
No EIA was shared with Asia Pacific staff undergoing a parallel restructuring process, where the scale of changes are even more pronounced.
As the restructuring timeline comes to a close, members have approached us with a number of individual and collective concerns that have yet to be resolved by management. Many of these issues have equality considerations including:
- Parental rights
- Flexible working
- Medical leave
- Pay fairness
- Freedom of expression
- Basic employment rights
There are many learnings for the future, not least of which is the need to put in place safeguards to ensure equal treatment for all ITF staff irrespective of their place of work or form of contract.
In trying to find a way forward, it is critical that we treat these concerns with due regard and the utmost care. We remain committed to finding a resolution so that we all can return our full attention to the critical work of our organisation.
In solidarity,
ITF Staff Union
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