Postal workers protest in parliament square last year (picture: Guy Smallman) strike
Royal Mail workers were waiting for details of an agreement between bosses and union leaders as Socialist Worker went to press. The CWU union announced on Saturday that it had reached an agreement—but didn’t offer details of what was in it.
Instead, the union said its Postal Executive Committee would discuss the offer on Monday and Tuesday of this week. But it seemed unlikely that the agreement would be fundamentally different to an offer union leaders rejected just over a week before.
That offer included no change to last year’s below-inflation pay increase—and offered further below inflation increases for this year and following with a lump-sum bribe.
It also showed bosses hadn’t dropped sweeping assaults on workers’ conditions—including plans for later working hours and longer hours in the winter.
Crucially, it didn’t say anything about stopping workplace cuts already going through or reinstating the hundreds of victimised union reps and members. And it didn’t say anything about dropping plans to bring new starters in on worse conditions.
Bosses walked away from talks after union leaders said they couldn’t accept the offer. But nothing that would force them to break from their plans appears to have happened since. Instead, union leaders suggested to their members that they would accept elements of the offer but were seeking more concessions.
Royal Mail workers have staged 18 days of strikes since last year—but haven’t struck since December. Since then, they delivered another huge vote for action. But union leaders refused to call more action, as bosses blackmailed them with threats that Royal Mail could go into administration.
In the meantime, many workers have become frustrated with the leadership or demoralised about the prospect of beating Royal Mail’s plans. But, as one postal worker in Bristol told Socialist Worker, “Look at the nurses who rejected a bad pay deal. Look at the junior doctors who are striking. Why aren’t we with them?”
Some 20,000 RMT members employed by 14 train operating companies are faced with a strike mandate reballot as the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) put forward an updated offer. Having walked out on 16 and 18 March, planned strikes for 30 March and 1 April were suspended by RMT leaders.
The strikes were cancelled by union leaders in exchange for more information from the train operating companies. And after the RMT received a letter from the RDG with a proposal for a two-stage dispute resolution process.
It contained a 5 percent pay increase or £1,750—which was higher for 2022 and a second stage of negotiations for 2023 alongside consultations on changes to working conditions. A huge amount is riding on the strike at the train operating companies.
If bosses get their way, ticket offices will be closed or “repurposed”, inferior contracts will be brought in, and driver-only operations will be imposed. But despite the RMT leadership refusing to escalate action receiving an improvement in pay shows strikes can work.
Workers are building for a “yes” vote in the strike reballot which ends 4 May. If they win the vote, they must then follow through with demands for more strikes to win a better deal.
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