The union executive will vote on taking action on Wednesday, but Metro has already made moves to try to sabotage the "free travel day" by recruiting non-unionised staff to perform station duties. The company wrote to some staff on Monday, seeking volunteers to attend barrier gates. A person has been hit by a train in between Flagstaff and Southern Cross station. Credit:Penny Stephens "We are seeking your support in the provision of assistance by volunteering to attend barrier gates, during the morning and afternoon peaks, at various stations on the rail network," a leaked letter to staff from Metro's director of people and performance, Jacques Liebenberg, states. Public Transport Victoria has also begun to make moves to ease the disruption of train stoppages. "In the event that industrial action is taken, PTV is in a position to provide our customers with enough notice to make alternative arrangements," Jeroen Weimar,​ PTV director of performance and contract management, wrote to staff on Monday morning. "Over the coming weeks we may seek your assistance to help provide our customers with a good experience if action eventuates."

Union state secretary Luba Grigorovitch said the union was taking action after bargaining without reaching a resolution for five months. "This industrial action is aimed at Metro's hip pocket, not the travelling public," Ms Grigorovitch said. "Whenever we plan to take action that impacts on the travelling public, such as stop-work meetings, we will also seek to implement a 'free travel day'. "Our first four-hour workplace stoppage in 18 years is likely to take place next week and will coincide with a rally of members at Flinders Street Station," she said. Metro and the union are negotiating a new three-year wage deal. The current deal expired on June 30. A conciliation meeting, called by Metro, took place inside the Fair Work Commission on Monday. Metro said it still hoped to avoid industrial action.

"At this stage, Metro has not been notified of any industrial action," spokeswoman Sammie Black said. The union has voted to give itself the option of striking for up to 48 hours at a time. Its members would also refuse to skip stations or cancel trains unless it was critical to safety. Metro has also warned the union that it might take measures into its own hands and shut the network down should the union follow though on 19 of the 37 proposed forms of industrial action members voted for. A refusal by drivers to skip stations is among the list of actions Metro says could provoke a full or partial network shutdown, as is a refusal by drivers to report that a train they are driving is running late. "Although MTM [Metro Trains Melbourne] will do everything it can to minimise any service disruptions, I am informed by the business that some of these proposed actions would, if taken, result in serious safety or operational risks such that Metro would be forced to cancel services or shut down part or all of the network," Metro's Nick Dickinson wrote in a letter to Ms Grigorovitch.

There is hope in the Andrews government that a strike can be avoided, given that any action would not occur until next week. Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan said it was not in anyone's interests for action to be taken that would affect many thousands of Victorians. "The government is working to ensure that all parties continue negotiations and that this issue is resolved as soon as possible," Ms Allan said. The state opposition called on the Premier to intervene to stop the strike. "These are Daniel Andrews' union mates and he needs to tell them to go to the umpire, instead of holding commuters to ransom," the opposition's spokesman for public transport David Hodgett said.

Daniel Bowen, spokesman for the Public Transport Users Association, called on Metro and the union to settle their dispute as quickly as possible, for the sake of commuters who depend on the system to get around. "Obviously a disruption to services, even outside peak times, will inconvenience a lot of passengers. We would hope that strike action affecting services is kept to a minimum, and that the dispute can be resolved as quickly as possible," he said.