privatization

[Indy]

franchise's will only happen on the most money making walks ie: industrial estate's, high street walks etc.

I think its important to remember that the mail i.e. Royal Mail regardless of who owns it is a National Institution and there no way any Govt. is going to throw it to the wolves. Whoever takes over will be bound by a huge and detailed contract stipulating what they can and can't do and more importantly a minimum service level. I doubt any minister/govt. is going to want to be known as the ones that destroyed Royal Mail/UK postal service.

Now thats not to say there won't be huge changes.... as has already been mentioned I think wages will stagnate to the point where we'll be on on very close to minimum wage. Those coming into the company will have significantly worse T&C's. I can't currently see another future for RM other than bleak for you average OPG.

[fishtank]

Throw in a possible staff association

To be honest I think World Class Mailing is that by the back door. Too much favouritism, make working, corporate language, self important tasks and Bull shitting and not enough real world application for it to be anything else in my opinion. It just strikes me as a ready made association to step in and take on the Unions role when the timings right.

I agree.
I think if you look at the professor's work and the whole philosophy of WCM it's entire focus is to blur the lines between management and staff.
That's exactly what a staff association does,if you have a problem you take it to the staff association and they make a big deal of getting it resolved,the staff association being management led gets all the information first and pretty soon the union,starved of information and excluded from local problem solving becomes irrelevant..and dies.