英国地铁司机挣得比飞行员多

张祖平

Newspapers in England are reporting that subway train drivers get paid more than pilots， doctors， police officers and nurses. The Sunday Times newspaper reports that the three highest-paid drivers on the London Underground earned $130，000 last year. This included overtime， bonuses and pension payments.

It is a 69 per cent rise in pay since 2012. Journalists say the basic salary of a train driver is $70，000 a year. This is double the average wage of a nurse in London and more than what many airline pilots earn. The newspaper reports that police officers in London have a starting salary of $28，000. In addition to their pay， London Underground train drivers get over eight weeks paid holiday a year.

Many people think the high salaries train drivers get are unfair. James Roberts of the Tax-Payers Alliance said， “These salaries are totally wrong...Increasingly， the role of a subway train driver is getting easier.” He said that many train drivers no longer have to drive the trains because many train lines are fully automated1. He said drivers on automated train lines only have to open and close train doors. He was also surprised the drivers were going on strike for more pay.

A train drivers spokesman said their pay was for “the professionalism2， and expertise3 of delivering a professional public service for hundreds of thousands of passengers travelling on the underground every day.”

据英国报纸报道，地铁司机的工资比飞行员、医生、警察和护士还要高。据《星期日泰晤士报》报道，去年倫敦地铁上收入最高的三名司机的收入为13万元。其中包括加班费、奖金和养老金。

自2012年以来，英国地铁司机的工资增长了69%。记者说，地铁司机的基本工资是每年7万元。这是伦敦护士平均工资的两倍，也比许多民航飞行员的工资高。据报纸报道，伦敦警察的起薪为每年2.8万元。除了工资外，伦敦地铁的司机每年还有八周的带薪假期。

许多人认为地铁司机的高薪是不公平的。纳税人联盟的詹姆斯·罗伯茨说：“这些工资是完全错误的……地铁司机的工作变得越来越容易。” 他说，许多地铁司机不再需要驾驶，因为许多地铁线路完全自动化。他说，自动化地铁线上的司机只需要打开和关闭车门。他也很惊讶司机们为了更高的工资而罢工。

地铁司机的一位发言人说，他们的工资是基于“职业水准和专业知识，是为了给成千上万名每天乘坐地铁的乘客提供专业的公共服务。”