CWU union leaders could call new Royal Mail strikes

Workers protest in parliament square during Royal Mail strikes last December (Picture: Guy Smallman)

Postal workers’ union leaders have said they could soon call new strikes by Royal Mail workers if they don’t get a deal with bosses by early next week. The announcement, by CWU union general secretary Dave Ward on Friday, came after weeks of growing anger among workers at bosses’ attacks. 

Under orders from the top, managers pushed through workplace cuts, merging delivery and collection rounds into fewer, longer routes. Yet union leaders held off from calling action, with top bosses promising that cuts would only go through with union reps’ involvement.

Ward had hoped that a deal to end the long-running dispute was close. But nearly two weeks after he’d aimed to get a final agreement, bosses still hadn’t given him anything he thinks workers will accept.

Meanwhile, growing numbers of postal workers on social media complained about workload and stress—with many even announcing they’d quit—and asked what the union was doing about it.

Speaking on Friday, Ward said, “We completely understand the anger, the frustration, at the way the company are treating our members.” He added that he would call strikes “if the company cannot stop the attacks that are taking place in the workplace on a daily basis—the bullying, the pressure that they’re putting on you.”

This should be the final nail in the coffin for the idea that Royal Mail bosses will give workers a crumb out of talks. 

Royal Mail’s board—led by CEO Simon Thompson—are on a mission to smash it up. They want to turn it into a gig economy-style parcels courtier with pay and conditions to match. It’s something they’ve wanted for years—and now they’re ready fight it through to the end.

After Ward’s announcement, Royal Mail’s operations director Ricky McCauley warned he would punish workers with even more job and pay cuts. He said Royal Mail’s profits depended on the changes going through.

Workers shouldn’t let their union leaders accept the blackmail. Ward also said he wouldn’t “hide away” from the fact that “the company is in a serious financial situation.”

And in a note circulating on Friday, Martin Walsh warned that if the union doesn’t agree a deal, Royal Mail could go into administration. He’s a member of the union’s leading body, the postal executive committee. 

“This has an impact on our dispute as the board will be relieved of their duties. And the government appointed administrator appointed will have no interest in settling pay or mitigating change activity,” he said. “It will be to cut costs.”

He added, “Do you really believe if we just wanted to be popular by announcing strike action everything will go away? No, it is likely that Royal Mail step up their executive action in a desperate last opportunity to reduce costs to satisfy those who they need to keep out of administration.

“Those calling for action, you will likely get your wishes, but remember there are no options now without serious risks.”

Yet it’s not workers’ fault that bosses have trashed Royal Mail while awarding shareholders billions of pounds of dividends. And it’s not their responsibility to keep Royal Mail profitable.

If the government has to step in to keep Royal Mail going, then it should also be forced to bring it back into public ownership and run it as a public service.

The battle is a fight for the future of that service—and the jobs and livelihoods of the workers who keep it going. It’ll take more than strikes of one or two days, followed by fruitless talks. It needs longer, much more hard hitting action to bring Thompson and the board to their knees.