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The RMT said that it would now enter into “intensive negotiations” to strike a deal with Network Rail. Staff at train operating companies have also cancelled strikes.
Mr Lynch claimed victory and said that the RMT action this summer had “made rail employers see sense”.
He added: “We have always wanted to secure a negotiated settlement and that is what we will continue to push for in this next phase of intensive talks.
“Our priority is our members, and we are working towards securing a deal on job security, a decent pay rise and good working conditions. “If we have to take strike action during the next six months to secure a deal, we will.”
State-backed Network Rail had previously vowed to end archaic practices such as lengthy allowances for workers’ “walking time”, a ban on specialist teams sharing vans, and rules that mean engineers do not have to work outside a dedicated area even if a problem is just 500 yards away.
A senior industry insider downplayed the idea that management had caved in to unions, suggesting that the RMT had experienced “an epiphany” and realised they had to limit their demands given the state of the economy and looming budget cuts.
The breakthrough came less than a fortnight after Mark Harper was appointed as the new Transport Secretary, following repeated clashes between the RMT and his predecessor Grant Shapps.
It was announced just a day after Scottish operator Scotrail said it would hold strikes every Friday and Saturday between Nov 19 and Christmas in a show of force designed to secure a better pay deal north of the border.
In the summer, Network Rail announced a formal consultation aimed at “dumping outdated working practices and introducing new technology”.
Insiders said at the time that the company was furious at rules that mean it takes nine people to change a plug socket.
A source said: “Let’s imagine you want to change a single socket to a double in your kitchen.
“Potentially you’d need an electrician, a tiler and a plumber as your dishwasher waste pipe will need adjusting too.
“In Network Rail we can’t roster individuals, only teams and we can’t multi-skill those teams so we’d need to send a team of three electricians, three tilers and three plumbers – nine people to do a job one person could do.”
They added: “Our specialist teams won’t share vans or equipment so we can’t send one van with a mixed team in, we have to send two or more to each job.
“The specialist teams also won’t collaborate even to the point of not helping to unload another team’s kit.”
Switching desks at short notice, commonplace in many 21st Century offices, is also off-limits.
The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association had also been meant to strike in coming days, but abandoned the proposals earlier in the week.
Had the RMT taken a similar approach, it would have given bosses time to reschedule services. Instead, there is the prospect that workers will be paid for a shift even if trains do not run.
A Royal Mail spokesman said: “Royal Mail and CWU recognise that it is crucial to the future of the company and the long-term job security of its employees that we reach agreement to resolve the current pay and change disputes. There will now be an intensive period of negotiations on all aspects of pay and change.
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