Staff at Royal Mail have launched two weeks of industrial action in the latest round of strikesover claims for higher pay and threatened job losses. The postal union CWU fears 40,000 job losses
due to planned mechanisation of the postal system and wants more than the 2.5% pay increase offeredby Royal Mail.The CWU said the fortnight of staggered strikes at different locations across the countrybegan late on Wednesday, and support was strong with 98% of Mail Centre workers taking part in thestoppages. With little post being sorted, only relatively few letters would be delivered, officialssaid.
Billy Hayes, CWU General Secretary, said: “Postal workers have proved and continue to provethey have the resilience to go out on strike and lose pay in order to protect jobs and defend thepostal service. It shows how determined workers and the union are to stop Royal Mail managementfrom destroying this public service. The strike will continue for the next two weeks unless RoyalMail returns to meaningful negotiations”.
In response, Royal Mail said yesterday that 80% of employees were working as normal, andcollections and deliveries were taking place as usual throughout the UK. 12 regional mail sortingcentres were working normally while the other 59 centres were being staffed by some employees andmanagement volunteers.
Royal Mail reiterated that it is losing business because its costs and therefore its pricesare too high, and that it remains ready to meet the union leadership at any time to explain itsposition.
But the CWU retorted that the industrial action at the 12 large regional centres was firstdue on Friday, and that the 80% of staff working were not at locations which were on strike.
