in all fairness Im not really suprised. The union cant really take this particular fight any further. Grayling got his way and has starved the staff out of their HP cars (as he so well put it) and with nothing to lose Go merely plodded on with their contractual obligations and did what the DfT told them to do.
In a similar analogy look what happened when buses went DOO, putting all the bus conductors out of work. The initial arguements of safety, lost revenue and extended journey times soon faded as the general public put up with the extended journey times, safety wasnt compromised on a daily basis however fares didnt go down with the apparent cost savings and no doubt southern, Gat Ex and Thameslink fares haven't gone down either. If anything the combined cost of the admittedly now dispensable OBS and massively paid off driver is now higher, however I wouldnt be suprised to see natural wastage kick in here and the OBS dwindle in numbers. Only then will Grayling get his cost savings he so desperately seeks.
best plan now for the union is to regroup, and take the war into a mutually beficial direction. Time look at the whole situation and come up with a plan that secures the best for not only its members, but for everyone in the conductor/train manager/OBS role. DOO is coming, its only a matter of time. The likes of the southern franchise will only serve to prove it works to the people that want it to work. Works of course doesnt mean its the correct way but when MPs are looking for political favour then what works to gain votes is all that matters plus government knows the union will cave in eventually and that by then the offer will be substantially less than what was originally tabled - and besides, there are other ways a company can be brought to its knees than by striking. The battle may be lost, but the war is far from over