We have seen the CWU respond strongly to Royal Mail’s letter offering negotiation with no pre-conditions in exchange for a promise not to call posties out on strike before Christmas. The CWU don’t seem particularly enamoured with the offer, claiming the deal had previously been offered but Royal Mail decided to wait for the mediators report first.
The CWU claim that Royal Mail have rejected recommendations from the report with the CWU claiming that this make it impossible for talks to resolve the issue.
That the mediator’s report is now out means that the last two steps of the mediation process are now underway:
- If either party is unable to accept the mediators recommendations then a further 2 week period is prescribed for further negotiations. The disagreeing party is expected to advise the reasons for rejecting the recommendations and their alternative suggestions.
- If by this stage agreement hasn’t been met then the parties will write to each other to notify of their intentions. It is at this point that the CWU could notify Royal Mail of their lawful intention to call for strikes.
We can be pretty certain that if the two sides don’t come to an agreement in the next few days and weeks that the CWU will move forward with their ballot mandate and call for strike action, potentially as soon as over the Black Friday period and then in the run up to Christmas.
“Royal Mail Group’s position in this dispute is born out of dogma and raised on deceit. Today’s press release is a total sham designed to undermine the CWU and any prospect of an agreement.
The ‘significant step’ they refer to was actually proposed by the CWU on the 8th October 2019. That offer was to move immediately from mediation to formal negotiations with the proposal that the CWU would not give any notice to take industrial action for effectively six weeks, at which point we would reflect on the genuine nature of the negotiations.
RMG rejected that offer in preference to wait for the external Mediator’s report. They refused to meet all last week and only offered a 4 hour slot this week.
Their letter referred to in their press release was emailed late yesterday after 17.00hrs and was the subject of a press release before we met today. Ask yourself, is this the actions of people trying to resolve this dispute? Equally today they have rejected significant recommendations from the external Mediator’s report making it impossible for talks to resolve all issues.
We will consult with the CWU Executive tomorrow and determine our response.”
– Terry Pullinger, Deputy General Secretary (Postal), CWU
105 Responses
Guess we will start planning to route as many of our sales through other couriers then… Not going to sit around waiting for a strike to disappoint our customers and mess us around. Strike by all means… but don’t cut off your nose to spite your face, when a few weeks delay could make alot of difference.
Good luck with those profits this year… im sure we won’t be the only ones making plans to side step RM at this bumper time of year.
Can we still legally strike now that there’s a General Election imminent on 12th December 2019? Or would it be deemed unlawful? I do hope that we can strike and show RMG that we really mean business! I am a CWU Unit Rep in Bristol.
Rico is going ahead with his cunning Teutonic skullduggery whatever the cost
he has come here to win and get what he wants anyway.
I’m not sure strike action is gonna help with an attitude like his.
maybe even unofficial action is the way
it would be a last hurrah! anyway
Our vote is completely legal bring it on Colin london
This guy will go or removed from royal mail,you will see he is not fit for leader, his intention his own profit and I am not letting him to have it.Bring it on.
Pullingers mandate is strike …strike …strike, will he lose any money… why not have a ban on overtime, that would be just as damaging as our office would come to a standstill within 3 days, and NO ONE will lose money…Pullinger had been itching for a strike the minute this guy stepped on as CEO, our competitors will be rubbing their hands, and it will cause irreparable damage to our business…Royal mail….RIP
Am a postman and I think this going to cost us, we in a losing battle strike and we lose customers, don’t strike and they steam roll the company, I feel I be out of a job in 5 years max anyway the way this job going. End up being another city link. Can’t move with the times. I voted to strike and happy I did but in the end it cost me my job .
Phil, wake up and smell the coffee mate!!! Can you not see that Rico wants to asset strip the business and BREAK it to BITS!!! For self greedy gain. I am a unit CWU Rep at a Bristol DO, contact me if you want to get Educated!
Not once have terms and conditions been mentioned. Royal Mail have never said they are going to attack this or give zero hour contracts. Without Royal Mail the CWU will cease to exist and vice versa. Reality was staff ghosted overtime for years , and now they have to work all paid hours like the rest of us do. Huge pay rises over many years and best terms and conditions in the country.
Postie dont need to go on strike to cause havoc, all we need to do is not scan 2d barcodes for track items or signed for items refuse to use our PDAs for a few days work to rule. Royal mail systems would crash with customer complaints, public still get their parcels why royal mail try to track thousands of parcels. Postman dont lose money with strike action and keep the public on side. Plus Rico is a c u next tuesday
I’ve been an Lgv driver for 30 years with the Royal mail yet another person from abroad tries to come in and with another golden handshake take over and disregards all previous agreements selling off parts of the company for his own profit I’m proud to stand up and fight for my job and proud of the CWU it’s a shame there’s not many unions left in this country that will do that its about time the British public realise that we the workers want to keep it as the Royal Mail and not sell it off to a foreign company
Almost as strong as the great miners union. What ever happened to those guys
At least i have hermes to fall back on though obviously i’d prefer to use royal mail
we can’t afford to strike the truth is we can’t afford not to , if we are to stand any chance of a future. To be a young new starter in Royal Mail and to stand a hope of getting a mortgage or starting a family, job security,pay and conditions are imperative . We must stand together and do what we all know has to be done. Let’s protect the new generation of of Royal Mail workers and let them have a future
Rico… come on crush these living in the past communists
The clowns that think using a courier will be the answer have obviously not used them a lot. Parcels and packages left on doorsteps or chucked over gates willy nilly. I see it all the time. The courier-drivers mostly only get paid on completion of a delivery so if your not at home to take receipt good luck, you might find the items been ” delivered” to never be seen again.
Maggot man says bring it ob
It came up on my PDA today that if we don’t go on strike before Christmas Rico will enter in to serious negotiations, Does Rico think we are stupid, why can’t he enter in to serious negotiations now its not like Christmas pressure is going to affect him or he’s going to be rushed off his feet , the guy should be ashamed of himself and so should his stooges, You’re in Britain now Rico and over here we do things differently.
Im glad i retired in july after 39yrs as a postie the job is being rundown with impossible targets rounds getting bigger and they want you to speed up but you have to scan loads of parcels that slow you down bosses coming from supermarkets to run delivery offices absolutley clueless about royal mail but can tell you the price of a bunch of bananas i support the strike and you have to win it otherwise you will get steamrollered how can you be run by a guy who lives in switzerland and only works 26 days a year
Strike is not the answer change is royal mail is one of the most unfaire places to work for .
If you don.t fit in or don,t stand up for yourself and part time you are treated like crap .
Strike and destroy the company, don’t strike and lose terms and conditions. We lose either way, unless we box clever. Not scanning items, go slows and so on.
This site is cencored
Dean gave a good suggestion which would harm royal mail and no one else a doodle idea I’m a postman it is a great idea
Well done modern twats,put down every Union and all they’ve achieved. The Jarrow marchers turn in their graves, if you want a crap job,be treated like shit etc just carry on talking shite. Miners or Maggie, who do you vote for, go and see the mining villages she destroyed sure you’ll be happy.
Reflect! To a time when John Robert’s was head honcho at RM.
Sir Tom Wastson did his bit then Alan Leighton arrives on, was it £50k part time, then Adam Crozier on mega bucks followed by Moia(?) Green again on mega remuneration, (was’nt some of it returned?), leading the business into privatisation- remember the share price then? Who’s run off with the Gold? Now the current incumbent has his own agenda. For better or worse avoiding issues now is storing up conflict for the future. Have any of them been Postmen/women?
Get all these previous & the current Leader/s in front of an impartial Select Committee – WITH TEETH – include the CWU, & sort matters for the long term benefit of Customers & the Business. What’s not to like?
I’m RM newbie and only 2 years with business. Also 2 years member of CWU.
I have never seen company so screwd by own employees, CWU to my opinion just protecting people who don’t want to work and allow lazy and self centric people to run the show and people who work really well can’t be rewarded because of “equality” . Management is threaten by CWU breathing on their neck and disable them from improvement.
Now who want to educate me and reply that you are doing your best at work and need CWU to protect you… BS…. If you work hard and do your best every manager will recognise that…. On the other hand if you abusing system and just want to do as little as possible then you need CWU and well done to Rico for getting rid of this in RM
Not scanning items ia a stackable offence as your name is on the pda. Hence even zero scanning is also a disciplinary. Strike for the terms and conditions which the union have negotiated to get us at precent. I believe competitors should use us as a example not royal mail following zero tax paying competitors. We are a 500rys company.
Royal Mail employees cannot continue to work and behave as if this was 1970.
Amazon is creating its own delivery army and, whatever you think about the way it operates, it will work.
CWU chiefs should bear this in mind when directing their members to go on strike employees. Look what happened to the Post Office.
As a postman in a mail centre an cam assure you everyone here is voting to strike as they don’t want to work more, they take extra 5 minutes either side of a break as “we got to walk to the break room and back” yet you watch them sprint and be out that door in seconds at the end of shift, smoke breaks , talking to every one on to way to a section break. It’s worse than school children, over a 8 hour shift 5 hours of that are actually working, and that’s barely at the minimum pace set.
Staff treat work as a social experience, not a work place.
royal mail is 1/3 over staffed, the job requires 3 people as 1 person does 200% of the workload while the other 2 do 50%.
Royal mail will die as a company, it’s a matter of when not if, and that when is approaching faster each time the union impose these crazy demands.
As a postman working nights, I can can easily earn nearly 40k a year for a unskilled, no effort job where i go home feeling as fresh as when I left. And I’m the 200% workload Muppet.
Martin you dont know shit like u say u have only been in the job for 2 yrs comeback in another 10yrs and lets see how you feel then if royal mail is still going in 10 yrs time
Dont worry about public opinion. You’ve got to ignore that when going down the strike route. Theres no point doing it half hearted, OT ban, work to rule etc. Full on strike action at the most effective time of the year is the only way forward.
The question we all have to answer is do we stand up and be counted or rollover and get crushed……better to live 1 day as a lion than a 1000yrs as a lamb…..
Why has no-one mentioned that the managers union has given us its full backing on striking, unlike previous industrial action
As a RM employee, I have my Good day and my Bad day. If you contribute to the CWU and have worked for RM for a long time then I can understand why you just want it easy all the time. But when we are asked to pull together. their are to many old dogs that want it easy.
If you are not willing to pull together over the xmas period and consider all the disruption that We are about to cause on the people that rely on us, then shame on you All.
I think the CWU is using xmas to its advantage. But when we have to clear the back log are they willing to get rid of the old dogs that are causing all the problems.
If you want to STRIKE….
Then please do it after Xmas..
Just look at asda worker’s.
You’ll work martini hours.
Any time
Any place
Any where when we tell you
Well you should be thankful you work in a mail centre, I have worked on delivery for 30 years, I am lucky if I have time to stop for a break, and if I do, I don’t have a canteen which is subsidized on price, I have to sit in a van, with no toilet facilities, and then you get comments about ‘postie’ sitting around doing nothing. As for finishing early, the people who do in my delivery office, start up to an hour before their time, with no extra pay, just so they can get their deliveries done, We are under staffed and manager hold mail back at least once a week, as they prioritize tracked parcel as thats what their bonuses are paid on. As for 40k a year, lucky you, I’m not on 25k a year, and that’s what universal credit is based on.
RMG was in profit and doing well, until Rico Black took over and got his big welcome bonus, to which he paid no tax or NI contributions as he lives in Switzerland.
Spot on sue thats what its like in delivery offices and the bosses still want you to do more flexing
To the guy who works in the mail centre,have you ever been on the street for 4-5 hours a day??have you ever delivered a d2d that you get paid for??your in the easiest jobs in the company and many guys in the Do’s dnt think mail centre workers are real posties anyway as you for do what we do,you should think on see when the job cuts come you guys in the mail centre are 1st to go as you say to many people not doing enough
RM have asked for the review of the USO to be brought forward. Why? Perhaps they want to do away with the USO and cut approx. 20,000 jobs to fund the “never satisfied” shareholders?
So Phil what is your solution to this mess we are in in CAUSED BY BACK AND THE BULLY BOARD!!!!!! Roll over and be tickled or fight for your PRINCIPLE!!! And for your information to correct you regarding Parcel Force if greedy Back had is way is thus:- their contracts would remain exactly the same for a period of one year and then Back could do whatever the **** with them, FACT!!!
As a retired delivery postman ,I can say that indoor staff in large offices have always had it easy,like many managers they are surplus to requirement. They should be redeployed to the front line to take the pressure off delivery staff. Having said that the public and customers should be alarmed at what Rico is planning,nobody is going to win once he gets his way and rides off into the sunset with his pockets full and the taxman can’t touch him. Do the public think couriers will deliver Christmas or birthday cards ,not a chance there is no money in that.
Keep the red flag flying guys
As you march over the cliff edge
We are already looking elsewhere to ship our orders – Amazon Logistics are very favourable now and can take all our large letters, small parcels and large parcels if needed to avoid the strike, and they provide full tracking too – cheaper than Royal Mail for like for like service.
This switch is triggered by the need to avoid Royal Mail disruption. We can not afford to receive negative feedback from lots of disappointed customers and the cost of shipping additional packages to replace those that have not arrived after a few days – that always happens when Royal Mail strikes.
Once we switch – why would anyone move back to a Royal Mail?
I’d understand a strike if they were not ALWAYS timed for maximum disruption to Royal Mail customers.
Why would any business want to do business with another company where the employees deliberately stop working at the most important time of year which is a make or break for online retailers – when there are now credible and affordable alternatives with better/cheaper tracking too! Royal Mail will continue to shed customers and that will inevitably lead to staff reductions…
Martin the newbie
What a load of old nonsense…
Its the agreements the CWU have worked hard for over the years that have have given you the terms and conditions you currently have.
We even have an agreement that has no compulsory redundancies which means somebody like you with two years in this business have got an above average chance of retaining your job…
Nothing personal pal but if being a paid up CWU member isn’t for you, and standing shoulder to shoulder with your work colleagues in the face of adversity doesn’t appeal then switch the light off and shut the door behind you..
Regardless of views no business needs disruption to its service just as Amazon introduces the largest threat to the royal mails one remaining profitable part of its business it will probably ever face in the shape of Amazon flex delivery services.
the CWU
may have negotiated [held to ransom ] better conditions
but lost thousands of jobs to other couriers
Hi, From an outsider looking in, this is my opinion (for what it’s worth), Royal Mail employees are very well paid and enjoy a set of benefits that other employees of other delivery companies would and can only dream of. No one is saying that you don’t work hard, however is not what you are paid to do ??? Also no one is say that delivering mail is not important, however delivering mail is a relatively low skill job, if you feel that strong that your so badly paid, based upon your own skillset, you are all private individuals and can take your labour elsewhere, unless of course your very well paid for your skillset????. It’s very striking to me as soon as a story is on here about Royal Mail strikes, the comment section is bombarded by Royal Mail staff, this doesn’t strike me as an organisation that staff are working flat out 24/7, that just it appears to non-RM staff. Your organisation is no longer a national monopoly and you do not exist in a bubble.
Why do people think posties are overpaid? I get £11 an hour hardly makes me a millionaire!! I walk 11 to 13 miles a day (half a marathon 5 days a week) in all weather . 6 bags of mail a day plus oversized packets I can go to work in morrisons on a checkout for not much less ( probably more if Rico gets his way) so stop your bullshit about posties !! If you think it’s that great apply for a job. Or is it much easier for eBay sellers to rio off the general public with there illegal fake goods? Get real. Your blinded by you self importance and don’t give a dam about anything but your profits, . Well I’m not willing to pull my bollocks out to keep you happy. As far as I’m concerned strike for your jobs now or you might as well get out now for a lot easier job in minimum wage
We are going on strike for a reason, Nothing to do with pay, To many changes more than any other company, Royal mail signed the four pillars agreement which they deny, Apparently there is no money left in the pot but they give this money motivated director seven millions pounds to destroy our company, 97% says it all, so get your act together management.
It’s about time bullying and harassment stopped at Royal Mail and the fleet of vans are an absolute disgrace. Drivers are forced out in unroadworthy vehicles everyday . It won’t be long till they is a fatality!!! All because the shareholder needs his cut on the back of the postie. I’m not asking for more money but a bullying free and a safe work place is pretty standard. I’ve heard managers tell people to go to the toilet in there own time and I was even told I wasn’t allowed to go for a drink of water!!! You have know idea !!!
If you work for RM. In any roll. Then ask yourself one thing! “if I owned this company, would I be satisfied with my own performance and are my customers happy?”
Let us all have a 37 hour working week, but only if we are not pressured into constant confrontations from managers if we have to work more, for free.
If you are true to RM, then you should have no worries. But you are dishonest, then as a share holder I think that all employees hours should be monitored.
At least the miners can say they fought for there jobs. Maggie Thatcher just wanted revenge for what the unions did to Edward Heath in the 70s. Tell me how many banker’s lost there jobs for there incompitance in the financial crash. Most of them were claiming big bonuses again 6 months later. It should also be reported that Rico got away with paying taxes to this country for his massive 8.5 million he has already earned these are the sought of business men this country needs.
For the company to move forward and make a profit for the shareholders it needs to do away with the USO. That is for example a postie having to deliver a single item of mail eg sky leaflet to a farm 5 miles down a dirt track road and wrecking the van in the process just to keep the USO (Universal Service Obligation) protocol. How on earth is a company meant to make money on this type of service whilst paying the postman £11/12 per hour to do so. Also may I add a lot of the ageing workforce needs to be offered a redundancy package to get them moved on as their attitude usually is just to keep going even though they are past caring about the job or their colleagues who carry them.
Also way too many managers and deputy managers on big wages when there absolutely is no the need for all of them especially in the mail centre department.
Speak with the Courier next time something is delivered to you or when asked to acknowledge receipt of a neighbour’s item ….or talk to whoever delivers those non-RM leaflets to you each week…If CHARLES DICKENS was alive today he’d have instant material & storylines !!! (Especially if he got an Xmas seasonal job)
Remember when Express Dairies & TNT cherry picked packets & letters business from the non-privatised Royal Mail? Not so long ago but all too soon forgotten…
Some Courier’s vehicles look unroadworthy. Observed & asked a non-RM Courier recently, in an old de-logoed red RM van, as she emerged from a block of flats,’Should’nt you lock-up when you’re so far away’?- there were loose items on the dashboard & seats too- she replied ‘Would never get finished if l did all that.’
Anyone know how long Rico’s in charge? Will he be sent to the Russian front when it all turns to worms? Come to think of it where’s Moia now…? It’s going belly up…… Can’t ex-postperson Alan Johnson help & lend a hand to sort the whole thing out?
Is it true RM deliver non-RM items posted Fridays, into the RM network, by Couriers who only operate weekdays?
Worked in RM for 30 years and nothing will ever change as long as you have a management who want to bully it’s workforce.
Postmen a postwomen don’t want to strike coming up to Christmas or anytime to lose money, but when you are left with no option then the sad thing is you have to for to keep terms and conditions that goes with the job.
RM will have no interest in sorting this out only interested in playing stupid game’s to try and make the CWU and workforce look stupid.
I have worked for Royal Mail for over 10 years. I work in Mdec and its a joke sometimes. Just like some staff in the mail centres and some posties, they do the absolute bare minimum. Vast majority of the workforce would not get a job anywhere else. People do ridiculous things, that would be sackable offences normally, but they get away with it. I wouldn’t get anything close to the pay and conditions I get here, in another job.
I’m a member of the CWU and didn’t even get a card to vote!
Toby if you think if Rico Bac gets is way the service you expect will be a shadow of what royal mail is now be lucky if it’s a 4 day service. We will strike to save our jobs.
You should abslutely carry on with the strike at xmas time. As I’ve read all the comments, most of the arguments against it, are non-sense.
Businesses and customers will look for other alternatives to dodge this bullet, that’s for sure, and that will be a loss of RMG, and Rico. If Rico won’t deliver xmas with RM, he will be fired, you can bet on that. He is nothing more than an overpaid greedy clown, look at HIS package, and look at YOURS. 6 million buyout? 2,7 million annual salary? F**K THEM F**K HIM.
this clown was the employee of a RMG owned company (GLS), he asked for his pocket money, to take the job, and in the end of the day YOU guys have to pay it.
RMG is skimming you off left and right, they are taking everything piece by piece.
Have no illusion, if you won’t stand up for yourselves, you will end up as Angard employee with zero hours contract, minimal wage, no pension, cancelled shift, etc…
I find this extremely sad, for numerous reasons.
RM was the best postage service i’ve ever used, great tracking, mostly useful customer service, working investigation teams, no hassle with claims, hell, i loved it so much, that I actually went to work there, just to have some insight. (I have my own business, sending hundreds of valueable items per year via RM) It was a great experience (even tho there were a few lazy and clueless individuals).
Don’t want to change the topic, sorry…if Rico won’t settle with you, RM will lose customers, it will also lose lots of stock value, investors will withdraw, and UK government will be kinda forced to buy it back in order to protect 110 000 jobs and the biggest and most reliable logistic system in the country. That’s a win for both of you and the country.
You can only lose, if you won’t do anything. You have my support guys, told my local postie today too, lol.