See why over a million readers pay to read 11 best freelance python developers the Financial Times. Processing, distribution, international, collections and admin workers go on strike. Significant disruption is still likely on the dates below, but as not all staff are involved Royal Mail says it will only affect «parts of our operation».
«The price of everything’s going up, people are having to do more and more overtime,» she said. Inflation, the rate at which prices rise, is at a 40-year high of 10.1% and expected to surpass 13% later this year. General Secretary Dave Ward said workers faced the «biggest ever assault» on jobs, terms and conditions «in the history of Royal Mail». The plan was approved despite objections over increased flooding, sewage leak risks and traffic. International Distributions Services, which is the parent company of Royal Mail, saw its share price tumble by 6.75% to 195p on Friday following the announcement. The next strike date is scheduled for 20 October followed by a further walk-out on 25 October.
The union said postal workers «will not budge» until they receive a «dignified, proper pay rise». It comes as Royal Mail said the Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents the strikers, had rejected a pay rise offer «worth up to 5.5%» after three months of talks. It said plans by the postal service include cutting workers’ sick pay, delaying arrival of post by three hours and inferior terms for new employees. The planned 19 days of industrial action include Black Friday week and Cyber Monday, as well as 13, 20, and 25 October, and 28 November.
«While bosses rake in £758m in profit and shareholders take £400m, workers are expected to take a serious real-terms pay cut,» he added. The company is encouraging people to post items as early as possible to avoid disruption. He described the plans as an «asset-stripping business plan» that will lead to the break-up of the company. This would effectively see employees in secure, well-paid jobs turned into a «casualised, financially-precarious workforce overnight», said the union.
Unite said Royal Mail managers will take their contracted breaks, start and finish exactly on time and take their rest days, leaving no manager on site. Delays to key services such as next-day delivery and tracked items could potentially be impacted. Trade union Unite said the industrial action will impact the postal service across the UK “immediately”.
The firm says it will try to keep services going to some extent but disruption and delays are likely to be significant. This is set to be followed by three days of strike action between 20 and 22 July. However Royal Mail says it “does not recognise” the pay cut figures and argues the job losses have been met through voluntary redundancy. «They should be focused on a resolution to this dispute for their members and the long-term health of the business, rather than damaging strike action,» it said. Royal Mail workers are to strike on six days in December, including Christmas Eve, usually one of the busiest days of the year for the company.
Post Offices will stay open and offer their usual services but Royal Mail collections will be limited. Special Delivery mail will still be prioritised «as resources allow» but the usual next-day guarantees are being suspended and customers can’t claim compensation for delays. “We committed to protecting pay for all managers who stay with Royal Mail, and the vast majority have seen an increase in their earnings. Inflation, the rate at which prices rise, hit 9.1% in May and is forecast to go higher later this year.
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Postal worker Hannah Carrol, who is part a strike at Whitechapel in East London, said she wanted to see wages rise in line with the growing cost of living. The union has called for Royal Mail to increase wages to an amount that «covers the current cost of living». General Secretary Mr Ward said the changes could lead to the «destruction of the special relationship that postal workers and the public have in every community in the UK». Royal Mail also revealed that it will have to enter talks with the union because, it said its legacy voluntary redundancy scheme, which offers up to two years’ of pay, «is now unaffordable». During the first half of its financial year, Royal Mail said strike action cost the business £70m, leading to an operating loss What is uniswap of £219m compared to a £235m profit last year.
The union is set to decide its next steps, which could include bin strikes. Members of a second union have accepted a pay offer of either £1,292 or 3.6% for council staff. Royal Mail also wants employees to start later and finish later to accommodate online shopping habits, where people tend to order goods in the evening or late at night and want next-day delivery. Julie Macken, co-founder of natural skincare firm Neve’s Bees, told the BBC the prospects of more strike action «makes me really scared what will be the global currency of the future actually».
Royal Mail managers are set to go on strike in a dispute over jobs and pay. The CWU which represents more than 115,000 postal workers at Royal Mail, said it still wanted a negotiated settlement with Royal Mail Group and would «continue to engage the company to that end». The CWU is the latest of several unions to ballot for strikes in recent weeks as the cost of living soars. Royal Mail has been attempting to make the company a «parcels-led» business as the number of letters being sent through the post declines and more people shop online. The postal company said it will begin notifying workers of its plan, which includes up to 6,000 redundancies. Twenty-one dates are affected by Royal Mail strikes in September, October, November and December.
Royal Mail workers are striking on multiple days across the next few months, with people warned to expect delays to their parcels and letters. The unions has warned of disruption to post and parcels across the UK, though the Royal Mail says it has “contingency plans” in place. The union claims that more than 2,400 managers will be protesting against plans to cut up to 700 jobs and reduce pay by up to £7,000 for some. But while there have been calls for pay rises, there are concerns that higher wages to cope with the current cost of living could fuel further inflation.
Industrial action will threaten the job security of postal workers, said Royal Mail, calling on the leaders of CWU to cancel the walk-out and accept invitations for talks. Royal Mail workers are holding the first of 19 strikes in a long-running dispute over pay and conditions. CWU members are striking over a pay deal Royal Mail offered earlier this year. As well as an additional 3.5% increase dependent on workers agreeing to certain conditions such as mandatory working on Sunday to deliver parcels. These are likely to be the days with the worst disruption as it involves delivery and collection staff, as well as those who sort parcels and letters. They also said there was “no grounds for industrial action” and accused Unite of putting out misleading claims over additional job losses to members.
Mr Eatwell claims Royal Mail was looking to cut 700 jobs on top of 1,200 slashed last year, with managers who remain facing cuts to salaries of up to £7,000. Mike Eatwell, Unite national officer with responsibility for Royal Mail, said members have been “forced to the position of taking industrial action because those running Royal Mail refuse to see sense”. First, Royal Mail managers are set to “work to rule” between 15 and 19 July, meaning they will work strictly according to contracted hours and duties. The union has been told a 3.5% is available subject to further talks and agreements, which would total a 5.5% rise. «Despite nearly three months of talks, the CWU have not engaged in any meaningful discussion on the changes we need to make to adapt,» a statement added. Workers on the railways and at airports are also in pay disputes with employers, with prices for goods in the UK rising at the fastest rate in 40 years.
This is the sixth strike for postal workers, and comes after a summer of unrest which saw rail workers and criminal barristers walk out amid disputes with their employers. While the industrial action will be carried out by managers, the union warned postal staff might also refuse to work in unmanaged buildings. Unite claims the industrial action will “impact the postal and parcel service immediately across Great Britain and Northern Ireland”. The CWU rejected the offer describing the company’s plans as the «Uberisation» of the postal service.