Royal Mail dispute nears end as union recommends peace deal to posties

    Letters will not be delivered and some parcels will be delayed, the Royal Mail has warned.

    Royal Mail workers to hold 19 days of strike action

    • « This vote is a historic testament to CWU members across the country who have stood firm against the most severe attacks faced by any set of workers since the miners, » Mr Ward said in a statement.
    • Deliveries and weekend volunteer operations would not be covered and managers would stop working extra unpaid hours, the union said.
    • The firm says it will try to keep services going to some extent but disruption and delays are likely to be significant.
    • « Postal workers across the UK now face the fight of their lives to save their jobs and the service they provide to every household and business in the UK.
    • Mr Warnes said the unions had taken those undertakings seriously and he was confident the planned bans would not breach commitments made to the industrial umpire.
    • Earlier, the RTBU threatened to slow trains to 23 kilometres per hour below the speed limit in zones of 80kph or above, as part of two week action starting from midnight on Wednesday.

    The two sides recently met for talks at the Fair Work Commission, where the unions gave undertakings not to launch particular types of work bans. Separate action by the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) will still take place between 8am and 4pm on Wednesday, when some Sydney Trains employees will take part in rolling hourly « work stoppages ». Earlier, the RTBU threatened to slow trains to 23 kilometres per hour below the speed limit in zones of 80kph or above, as part of two week action starting from midnight on Wednesday.

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    • The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said workers would walk out on 26 and 31 August and 8 and 9 September.
    • Royal Mail is moving from its traditional business of delivering letters – which is no longer profitable – to the fast-growing world of parcel deliveries, driven by the increasing popularity of online shopping.
    • Postal workers at Royal Mail have delivered the ‘biggest national strike vote in British history’, according to their union.
    • Bosses say reforms need to be agreed, to afford pay increases and modernise the railway.
    • The company has previously said that 18 dates of strikes to date, including over the crucial Christmas season, had cost it £200m.
    • « The CWU’s decision to choose damaging strike action over resolution regrettably increases the risk of further headcount reductions. »

    Deliveries and weekend volunteer operations would not be covered and managers would stop working extra unpaid hours, the union said. However, the company refutes the basis for the action and describes the pay cut claim as « wrong ». « Further strikes and resistance to transformation by CWU will only make our financial position worse, and threatens the long-term job security of our postmen and women. » A spokesman for CWU said Royal Mail’s management was trying to « casualise » the postal service. Delivery staff are not yet involved on these days, so some people may still receive items. Special Delivery mail will still be prioritised « as resources allow » but the usual next-day guarantees are being suspended Cambio euro yen and customers can’t claim compensation for delays.

    How much are Royal Mail workers paid?

    « The CWU rejected our offer worth up https://www.forex-world.net/ to 5.5% for CWU grade colleagues, the biggest increase we have offered for many years, » he said. « The CWU’s message to Royal Mail’s leadership is simple – there will be serious disruption until you get real on pay, » he added. The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said workers would walk out on 26 and 31 August and 8 and 9 September.

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    Around half of rail lines are shut again on Wednesday, with no services at all in most of Scotland and Wales. Watch Make Sense of Strikes on iPlayer and find out more about why people are striking and whether industrial action works. At Coventry North delivery office on February 8, there was a large take-up of the leaflet alongside a model resolution drafted by the PWRFC calling for workplace meetings to halt the imposition of the pilot scheme. Another delivery worker agreed with the PWRFC statement that the pilot’s imposition was “a bureaucratic Luno exchange review stitch-up” which should be rejected. The company also expressed disappointment in the decision and said there were « no grounds for industrial action ». Some postal staff could refuse to cross picket lines or work in buildings without a manager present, leading to further disruption.

    Postal workers will not take planned industrial action on 16 February, after it was blocked by a legal challenge from Royal Mail. « But those in charge of Royal Mail need to wake up and realise we won’t allow them to destroy the livelihoods of postal workers, » it said. The long-running dispute revolves around pay, jobs and conditions at the privately-owned firm. The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said « the livelihoods of postal workers » were at stake.

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    Mr Thompson had been recalled by MP members of the committee who challenged his credibility. The bitter dispute involved the union calling for the resignation of chief executive Simon Thompson and Mr Thompson saying the company was losing £100m a day during strike action. Under the agreement, staff will get a 10% rise over three years and a one-off lump sum of £500, though the union had initially sought an annual increase in line with the rate of inflation – currently running at 8.7%. The union has said the strikes are partly about the « Uberisation » of the postal service, including « widespread changes… introducing Uber-style owner-drivers, mail centre closures and changes to Sunday working ». Firms have warned of the hit to Christmas sales as postal workers squeezed by rising costs fight for higher pay and better conditions. The industrial action is in response to what the Unite union says are plans to cut 700 jobs and slash pay by up to £7,000.