More post strikes for next week

Pete Bainbridge

October 22, 2009

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The region's Royal Mail staff will join 120,000 around the country for a THREE day walk-out, starting next Thursday.

THOUSANDS of postal workers across Greater Manchester will take part in more nationwide strikes next week.

The region's Royal Mail staff will join 120,000 around the country for a THREE day walk-out, starting next Thursday.

The next industrial action will include employees who are on strike this week, but also workers at three data-entry offices, including Stockport.

Up to 1,000 workers went out on strike at Manchester's mail centre, on Oldham Road, today.

A further 3,000 postal delivery staff have walked out across Greater Manchester tomorrow.

The second week of strikes will start next Thursday when Manchester's mail centre will be hit by 1,000 striking workers again.

Next Friday, the Manual Data Entry Centre (MDEC) in Stockport - where staff input postcodes into sorting machines - will shut.

Similar centres MDECs in Plymouth and Stoke will also close for the day.

Then on Saturday 3,000 postmen and women across Greater Manchester are set to strike.

30,000 temporary workers

Royal Mail management are employing 30,000 temporary workers in response to the strikes - a move slammed as 'inflammatory' and 'aggressive' by the CWU.

Vicky Thompson, 21, student welfare officer at Manchester University Student Union, said she was worried that the city's students could be enticed by the part-time jobs and undermine the strike action.

Miss Thompson said: "At the moment it's remarkably difficult to get part time jobs, nearly impossible in fact.

"It's fine to be taking a temp job with Royal Mail over Christmas, but students taking a job now and being used to undercut the strike action is my concern.

"If students are already working within the Royal Mail, then they should join the CWU and join them on the picket line.

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "The recruitment is not to bring people in to do our postmen's work when they are out on strike, but to make sure that we have people to help clear any backlogs between strikes as well as to help as happens every year with the seasonal build up of mail in the run-up to Christmas. This recruitment is, of course, fully in line with all employment law."

Jim McNichol, CWU branch secretary for Greater Manchester, confirmed next week's three-day strike and said: "We were hoping to get a settlement, but it doesn't seem to be coming. Until we can get back round a table, either between the CWU and Royal Mail, or at ACAS (arbitrators), we intend to strike again."

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Local lad, outsidethebox (22/10/2009 at 18:43)

hooray more postal strikes ,it will just make it quicker for the french/germans to take over our postal service maybe then we would have a service worth having.Myself having other peoples mail delivered to my address and my mail being delivered to my neighbours its time for a change .

Jiggerz, Mancunia (22/10/2009 at 18:57)

Here's hoping you're right Local Lad, perhaps they'll be better at stopping all the theft from the postbag too.

Oh, and Vicky Thompson, how about having a proper go at earning a living and get to work instead of dictating who should join strikes and who shouldn't take temp jobs? Socialist ideology is all well and good while mummy and daddy bail you out at uni, give it time though, reality will bite soon enough.

sneakitawc (22/10/2009 at 19:28)

UPS can get a package from the other side of the planet to my front door in less time than it takes the royal mail to get it from their sorting office to my postman's dvd player.

Ian Benn (23/10/2009 at 12:43)

Maybe we need a postal service of over worked, non-unionised and under paid men and women? That will surely make the post come on time. The Royal Mail has axed over 40,000 jobs in the last 5 years, maybe the failure of the Royal Mail has more to do with Crozier and the government than the hardworking posties. Good to see that they are standing up for their jobs and their industry.

Vicky is right, Royal Mail workers should all be in the union, fighting together and sticking it to Crozier and teh government that have raided postal workers pensions foods to pay for their own pay rises. Crozier earns 4 million a year, the average postal worker earns just over 20k. I know which whose side I am on and it is great to see students picking the right side as well.

Andanotherthing, Mcr (23/10/2009 at 13:14)

@local lad. My local delivery office is the same as yours, and possibly the same postman. I have never had any trouble, nor have my neighbours. I use Royal Mail a lot, not just for cashing giros and pension books.

I have never posted an Item that has not arrived at it's destination. I take care to make sure it is claerly and correctly addressed and securely packaged. Only one package that I was expecting has never turned up. That makes me so exceptional considering that sneakitawc and others think the place is staffed by theives.

minnie royle (23/10/2009 at 14:03)

at least there will be a drop in the number of red elastic bands littering our streets

Neil Mcnab's Moustache, manchester (24/10/2009 at 11:54)

I looked at the jobs Royal Mail had going a year ago, you could be a postman, doing the work that makes them what they are for £6 something an hour doing a 22 hour week, who can live on that?
OR You could work in branches selling loans and insurance for £18k a year with bonuses!
That says all you need to know them as business and the plans of those in charge, the Royal Mail has benn dismatled by idiots and is now on it's knees!

Esso Blue & R. Soul, Manchester (24/10/2009 at 12:27)

The post office are offering some of the employee's part time plus cash, the post office made a point of all the free time that some people can get? they forgot to mention that if the job centre had to make up any short fall then they may be hounded into full time work.
The merry-go-round.

Knowsleyman, Paphos (26/10/2009 at 08:23)

The London Chamber of Commerce & Industry has announced that the dispute has cost it's members £200M so far.

The principal reason?????????????

THE COST OF PAYING PRIVATE DELIVERY FIRMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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