ALMOST 8,000 people have now signed a petition calling for railman Ian Faletto, pictured, to be given his job back.

A group of his supporters were due to travel to London today to hand in the petition at the headquarters of South West Trains (SWT), which dismissed Mr Faletto earlier this year.

The attempt to persuade SWT to reinstate him is being led by the Rev Alex Russell, of St Mark’s Church, Pennington.

She said: “Campaigners are asking for justice for Mr Faletto, who was sacked by SWT after removing a trolley from the track, despite 27 years of loyal service during which he won 25 awards and commendations.”

The delegation was due to leave from Lymington Town station, where Mr Faletto was employed as ticket office clerk.

However, their visit to the SWT offices in Blackfriars was not expected to result in talks with company bosses.

SWT has said: “The right place for these matters to be considered is in an employment tribunal rather than through the media or third parties.”

SWT won’t discuss claims that Mr Faletto, 49, of Durley Crescent, Totton, was sacked for removing a trolley from the track. It claims that he was fired for a serious breach of safety.