Train strikes: will the summer of discontent of the railways be the first round of labour turmoil post-Brexit?

Pity the unfortunate commuter whose destination is Brighton, Brussels or Berwick-upon-Tweed: these journeys, and many more, hang over the threat of rail disruption.

In what is quickly becoming a summer of frustration for rail travelers, the five-day strike on the Southern Railway may have been called off halfway through, but few in the industry offer renewed talks at Acas about driver-only operations much hope of success. And while the train operator accepted the RMT union's offer to abandon industrial action if negotiations were to resume, there is no mood for reconciliation among rail union representatives working for other firms.

Starting this weekend, the RMT declared seven days of industrial action on cross-channel Eurostar trains, while four out of five RMT members working for Virgin Trains East Coast voted in favor of a strike.

• Read more Southern rail strike in industrial drama makes Home Counties frontline

The industrial action on ScotRail, which is also connected to the driver-only service of new trains, follows. In that conflict, a ceasefire is in place, but the train operator has accused the union of "disinformation that carries no scrutiny." "Talks continue, but on Monday in Dundee the RMT is holding a public meeting demanding: "Keep the Guard on the Train-Keep the Train Safe.

Although the Gatwick Express was not directly affected by the Southern strike, Aslef, the train drivers' union, is balloting its members over the airport service's industrial action.

In the last two decades, the fragmentation of the rail sector, along with the unprecedented tangle of legislation and working practices that have pre-dated privatization, means that the potential for conflict is considerable.

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It is reputed that the rail unions are more militant than the mainstream Labour movement. In the EU referendum, both Aslef and the RMT urged members to vote on Leave, stating: "The EU is anti-worker and can't be reformed" and "Leave the EU to stop attacks on rail workers" respectively. Meanwhile, in the Labour Party leadership contest, the white-collar rail union, the TSSA, is behind Jeremy Corbyn.

The tendency for conflict has been hardened by the current post-referendum administration. Patrick McLoughlin, the former transport secretary, was well known in the rail industry. But his replacement, Chris Grayling, the Brexit activist, is seen as a hard-line alternative to drive through reform.

The RMT has consistently claimed that it was on the verge of reaching an agreement with GTR, Southern's parent company, for the sole purpose of scuppering an agreement with the Department of Transport, so to speak. It seems increasingly evident that the DfT sees the Surrey and Sussex lines south of London as the industrial battleground for the modernization of the rail industry. Westminster's thinking is that overcoming the resistance of the rail unions to reform would mark an early triumph for the May Government and be seen as a welcome pro-business achievement.

The union maintains that its position is focused solely on safety, but members fear, perhaps quite reasonably, that accepting "driver-only operation" would reflect the thin edge of a wedge on all trains. They fear that many of their hard-won working conditions, and potentially jobs, may be threatened.

In the toxic industrial disputes that threaten to prevail until autumn, political antagonism is just one ingredient. More traditional conflicts concern the strike calls at Eurostar and Virgin Trains East Coast, which are based on rostering and future job losses, respectively.

But both train operators, who have so far been proud of good labor relations, live in a post-Brexit environment where revenue estimates look over-optimistic. Eurostar, already hit in its two destination countries of Belgium and France by the deterrent impact of terrorist attacks, is facing declining demand as economic uncertainty intensifies. Indeed, although the London-Brussels route should continue to produce good yields while Brexit negotiations take place, it is anticipated that traffic to the Belgian capital will drop significantly once the UK leaves.

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In the meantime, the partners on the East Coast franchise, Virgin and Stagecoach, did not anticipate a Leave vote and all the confusion involved when they ambitiously tendered for the London to Edinburgh route.

Train operators are unable to throw money at issues, and therefore, as income fails to meet goals, they will look ever more closely at costs. And for expenses, role reading and wasteful work activities.