<p>Railway staff in Britain on Saturday staged the latest in a series of strikes, the second in three days, as decades-high inflation hit salaries and prompted walkouts across various industries.</p>.<p>The stoppage by tens of thousands of workers disrupted weekend leisure travel with only around one in five trains set to run and some areas having no services.</p>.<p>It comes during a summer of industrial action across Britain, with staff in various sectors pushing for pay rises and better working conditions.</p>.<p>"We cannot tolerate being bullied or hoodwinked into accepting a raw deal for our members," said Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), which is among those striking.</p>.<p>"The government need to stop their interference in these disputes so the employers can come to a negotiated settlement with us."</p>.<p>He warned that further walkouts were likely unless a compromise could be reached over pay rises and working terms and conditions.</p>.<p>However, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the unions' "co-ordinated approach" showed they were "hell-bent on causing as much misery as possible".</p>.<p>Saturday's stoppage, set to hit football and cricket fans headed to matches as well as festival-goers, tourists and holidaymakers, will spill over into Sunday morning.</p>.<p>It follows a similar walkout Thursday, and a strike across London's transport system on Friday.</p>.<p>Official data Wednesday showed UK inflation at a 40-year-high above 10 per cent, as soaring food and energy prices hurt millions.</p>.<p>The Bank of England has forecast inflation to top 13 per cent this year, tipping the British economy into a deep and long recession.</p>.<p>The rail strikes have divided opinion, with some voicing frustration but others supporting the workers.</p>.<p>"I've got all the sympathy in the world for them," recruitment consultant Greg Ellwood, 26, told AFP this week at an unusually quiet Euston station in London.</p>.<p>"Everyone likes to try and divide people, but this is something I think people should stick to."</p>
<p>Railway staff in Britain on Saturday staged the latest in a series of strikes, the second in three days, as decades-high inflation hit salaries and prompted walkouts across various industries.</p>.<p>The stoppage by tens of thousands of workers disrupted weekend leisure travel with only around one in five trains set to run and some areas having no services.</p>.<p>It comes during a summer of industrial action across Britain, with staff in various sectors pushing for pay rises and better working conditions.</p>.<p>"We cannot tolerate being bullied or hoodwinked into accepting a raw deal for our members," said Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), which is among those striking.</p>.<p>"The government need to stop their interference in these disputes so the employers can come to a negotiated settlement with us."</p>.<p>He warned that further walkouts were likely unless a compromise could be reached over pay rises and working terms and conditions.</p>.<p>However, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the unions' "co-ordinated approach" showed they were "hell-bent on causing as much misery as possible".</p>.<p>Saturday's stoppage, set to hit football and cricket fans headed to matches as well as festival-goers, tourists and holidaymakers, will spill over into Sunday morning.</p>.<p>It follows a similar walkout Thursday, and a strike across London's transport system on Friday.</p>.<p>Official data Wednesday showed UK inflation at a 40-year-high above 10 per cent, as soaring food and energy prices hurt millions.</p>.<p>The Bank of England has forecast inflation to top 13 per cent this year, tipping the British economy into a deep and long recession.</p>.<p>The rail strikes have divided opinion, with some voicing frustration but others supporting the workers.</p>.<p>"I've got all the sympathy in the world for them," recruitment consultant Greg Ellwood, 26, told AFP this week at an unusually quiet Euston station in London.</p>.<p>"Everyone likes to try and divide people, but this is something I think people should stick to."</p>