In a long-running disagreement over wages and working conditions, postal employees went on strike again today. A total of 19 such walkouts are scheduled for the next weeks.
The greatest strike in a year that has witnessed industrial upheaval across several sectors, including rail, according to the Communication Workers Union (CWU).
Today was the sixth strike day in recent months, with picket lines set up outside Royal Mail offices by about 115,000 members throughout the UK.
Workers striking this morning were documented by the CWU in tweets from Leicester, Sheffield, Oxford, Aberdeen, Worcester, Belfast, and various parts of London.
Additionally, picket lines were set up in the West Sussex communities of Bognor Regis, King’s Lynn, Sidcup, Romsey, and Thirsk.
The union claims that the Royal Mail is preparing structural changes that will effectively transform workers with safe, well-paying employment into a “casualized, financially vulnerable workforce overnight.”
According to the CWU, proposals include cutting worker sick pay, delaying post delivery to the general public by three hours, and offering less favorable conditions to prospective hires.
Prior to the busy holiday season, the union has declared an additional 19 days of strike action.
“Postal employees face the worst ever attack on their employment, terms, and conditions in the history of Royal Mail,” general secretary Dave Ward warned.
The loss of daily deliveries and the abolition of the unique bond between the public and postal employees in every town in the UK pose further threats to the general public and companies.
Simon Thompson, CEO of Royal Mail, insults the intellect of every postal worker by claiming that their transformation goal is “modernization.”
“It is nothing more than a business strategy for asset stripping that will result in the dissolution of the corporation and the demise of Royal Mail as a significant contributor to the UK economy.”
Royal Mail Group asserts that it loses £1 million per day. These numbers, in the opinion of the CWU, need to be examined.
A representative for Royal Mail stated: “Three weeks ago, Royal Mail extended an invitation to the CWU to participate in negotiations via Acas to resolve our change and pay issue. On this issue, we have not yet come to an agreement with the CWU.
“Royal Mail is losing £1 million per day and has to adapt more quickly to changing consumer expectations,” the company said.
The financial position of the business is being weakened, and the job security of our postal workers is in jeopardy as a result of the CWU leadership’s decision to pursue destructive strike action rather than a settlement.
“We demand that the CWU leaders accept our request to begin negotiations via Acas right now and put off their upcoming strike action.”
We apologize for any difficulty that the CWU’s ongoing strike action may bring to our customers. To minimize any delays and maintain connectivity across the nation, companies, and individuals, we are doing all we can.
According to Jessica Willock, a home insurance specialist at Confused.com, interruptions will probably occur across the whole UK network as Royal Mail begins its longest round of strikes today.
Strikes are expected to occur the week of Black Friday and the day after Cyber Monday. Online purchases are prevalent at this time, which by itself may cause delays even if there are no strikes.
‘Some companies may want to employ alternate partners during this period to guarantee that clients aren’t waiting a lengthy time to get their deliveries.’