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| Royal Mail Industrial Dispute |
UPDATE (22/12/22): We have now received a response from the CWU, "An open letter". It is on a new page, here.
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UPDATE (21/12/22): Despite repeated attempts to get a response, including repeated contact by phone and email, and having spoken to them on the picket line in Southampton, neither the Communication Workers Union national media or the local Wessex South Central branch of the CWU have provided a written statement regarding the dispute. We were promised, by the CWU rep on the picket line, a full copy of the below statement that was posted on the Delivery Office. Sadly, as more strikes loom prior to Christmas, the statement has not been received.
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| CWU Strikes at Royal Mail |
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| Strike Day at Shirley Delivery Office, Southampton |
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UPDATE (13/12/22): Royal Mail will be going on strike again tomorrow. At the beginning of last week, we asked the Federation of Small Businesses *FSB) to respond to the disruption and the strikes. Here is their official response, given exclusively to Andrew Pope by the FSB. Tina McKenzie, Policy and Advocacy Chair, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), said:
“We urge both sides to do their best to find a landing zone for compromise, in order to allow for a reliable postal service that small firms across the country rely on to serve their customers.
“It’s no secret that small businesses are facing difficult trading conditions, with consumer confidence near a current record low, and with many facing higher energy bills even once Government support has been factored in, as well as elevated costs in other areas.
“Disruption to postal services being added to the mix is not something that will be welcomed by small firms, especially during the festive period, when both receiving and sending out goods and products is crucial to margins.
“Small businesses would be well advised to plan ahead, to see if alternative methods of sending and receiving can be found. Customer communication will also be key – letting customers know as far in advance as possible when they should order by to avoid disappointment.”
Southampton Independents has still not received any response from the local branch of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) or the national media officer of the CWU. We have chased.
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UPDATE (9/12/22): Contacting the local CWU branch to offer them a Right of Reply was very difficult, as the contact details that they gave for multiple
forms of contact were wrong. The email was wrong and their contact link
was wrong, leading to a "404 error". Nevertheless, we have contacted the phone number they give out and left a
message offering them a Right of Reply. To date, we have had no response from the Wessex South Central branch. Neither have we had a response from the national contact of the CWU.
ITV News is reporting that there will be a rally at Parliament today. They write:
"Royal Mail workers will stage a rally on Friday in their thousands, to mark another strike in the increasingly bitter dispute over jobs, pay and conditions."
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(8/12/22): The CEO of Royal Mail has written an open letter to residential customers and businesses. It is copied below, in full.
Southampton Independents acts for residents and businesses, while everybody else dithers and apportions blame, especially Labour and the Tories.
The Daily Echo has reported that Southampton Royal staff had been "told to prioritise parcels over letters", although the veracity of the claims made in the article, including the source of the photos, have been disputed.
However, postal staff have confirmed to Southampton Independents that parcel services are being prioritised, and eBay have been telling their sellers that the Tracked 48 and Tracked 24 services are being prioritised during strike action.
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| eBay Royal Mail Postage Service |
We have contacted the Federation of Small Businesses and asked them what they are doing to get resolution in the dispute. At the time of writing, we are still waiting for a response.
We have also contacted the Communications Workers Union locally and nationally to offer them a Right of Reply to the CEO's letter. While we wait for their reply, follow this link here to read what the union says on its website about the dispute.
The CWU confirm their strike dates on their website as:
"Friday 9th December
Sunday 11th December
Wednesday 14th December
Thursday 15th December
Friday 23rd December
Saturday 24th December"
And they have a set of Q & As on their site, for example:
"Why is the CWU in dispute with Royal Mail over pay?
Our Royal Mail members have had an unagreed 2 per cent pay deal imposed on them.
This is at a time when RPI inflation is currently running at 11.8 per cent and when Royal Mail has announced Group profits of £758 million and when the company is paying out many millions to private shareholders.
In a national strike ballot over pay, our Royal Mail members voted by a 97.6 per cent majority to take action."
Southampton Independents investigator, former postman and activist for the CWU, Andrew Pope, says:
"There are two sides in every industrial dispute. But enough is enough. This dispute must end now. Both sides must resolve the dispute. The Government must act to protect the economy. Members of Parliament must act to protect their constituents."
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From Royal Mail:
"An open letter to our customers
Dear <customer or business>,
At Royal Mail, we know this is the time of year when you rely on us most.
So we deeply regret that the Communication Workers Union (CWU) is planning further strikes on 9, 11, 14, 15, 23 and 24 December 2022.
Last week we delivered around 700,000 parcels during strike days and recovered service quickly. I want to thank personally more than 11,000 of our employees who came back to work during that last strike.
But the task gets more challenging as Christmas nears. So we’re asking customers to send Second Class mail by 12 December and First Class by 16 December 2022.
We’ll do everything we can to respond. And we're doing everything we can to settle this dispute.
Eight months of talks with the union. A pay offer of up to 9% over 18 months. But even before the strikes we were losing £1m a day. So we can only afford that offer if the union stops resisting the changes needed to deliver what you, our customers, ask for today.
You’re sending 60% fewer letters than you used to, and the number keeps on falling. You’re sending more parcels, which you want delivered quickly, including at weekends.
We’ve also listened carefully to our employees. Existing employees who aren’t required to work Sundays won’t be required to do so. And we’re introducing family-friendly options to help with our need for more afternoon working.
We are bringing in new recruits on different contracts, but their terms, conditions and pensions will still be the best in the industry. This is not the gig economy. We have a generous voluntary redundancy scheme and are NOT making compulsory redundancies.
We are the only people who deliver a universal one-price-goes-anywhere service to the whole United Kingdom, and we know how much you need us.
We urge the CWU to call off these damaging strikes. And we’ll do everything we can to deliver Christmas.
For everybody.
Yours sincerely,
Simon Thompson
CEO, Royal Mail"