Agreement Between PF and the CWU on 2011 PF Pay and Reward

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Letter to Branches




No: 477/11
Ref: 101
Date: 17th May 2011

To All Postal Branches With Parcelforce Members
To All Regional Organisers
To All Parcelforce Representatives




Dear Colleague

Agreement Between Parcelforce Worldwide and the CWU on 2011 Parcelforce Pay and Reward

Branches are advised that at a Postal Executive meeting held today, the 17th May 2011, an agreement was ratified regarding Parcelforce Pay and Reward for 2011 which has resulted in the following being achieved:

Agreement

Stage 1

2.6% increase on all elements of pensionable and non-pensionable basic pay, plus SA, overtime, all allowances and pay ranges etc backdated to the 1st April 2011.

£600 lump sum upon the acceptance of the agreement.

£7 increase in the payments made in the payments through achievement of new targets in the First Time Delivery scheme.

Stage 2

A further consolidated remuneration sum, equivalent to a weighted average of £67 will be applied to annual basic pay, pro-rata to less than full time staff, with full flow through as applied at Stage 1.

Ambition to achieve a further £400 lump sum. The £400 could be achieved at incremental stages dependant upon additional initiatives being able to deliver savings/benefits. The agreement also recognises that whilst the £400 is an ambition and that both parties are committed to achieving it, that there is also the potential for more should initiatives determine.

In respect of the £600 lump sum payable upon the acceptance of the agreement this relates to the recent Colleagueshare briefing where Parcelforce management made it clear that a further £600 would be available for the achievement of targets which will be part of the 2011 pay agreement. This £600 was originally achieved for Royal Mail Letter members in the Business Transformation Agreement and had now been agreed to be paid to Parcelforce members upon the ratification of this agreement in recognition of the progress made since the 2010 Reward and Recognition Agreement.

We believe that this agreement represents a pragmatic and realistic response to the current financial and political climate which allows for immediate and potential reward via increases in pay and lump sum payments. It should also be noted that the agreement makes specific and positive commitments to both the future of Parcelforce, the maintenance of the standard of living and job security of our members and indeed the potential for the creation of new jobs and reward commensurate with the growth in our industry.

A copy of the agreement has been attached to this document for your information.

The agreement will be subject to an individual members ballot and consultation with the SDGS Department will be taking place in regards to ballot arrangements, details of which will be communicated to Branches as soon as they are available. In addition there will also be a briefing held on the 19th May 2011 and the relevant Branches have already received information in this regard.

Branch Secretaries are requested to make sure that our members are made aware of the contents of this LTB.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Terry Pullinger, Assistant Secretary, email dwyatt@cwu.org, quoting reference 101.

Yours sincerely




Terry Pullinger
Assistant Secretary







AGREEMENT BETWEEN PARCELFORCE WORLDWIDE AND THE CWU REGARDING PAST & CONTINUING REWARD 2011



INTRODUCTION

A joint commitment was given in the 2010 Agreement regarding Past and Continuing Reward with the aim to conclude the next reward review by 1st April 2011. Since the introduction of the 2010 agreement we have been working hard on the progressive agenda items contained therein and have made significant progress on many of the items. We also agreed that progress on those items would be taken into account within the context of the prevailing market conditions and our commitment to maintain the standard of living and job security of our employees/members as part of our discussions for April 2011. Our discussions have also demonstrated our joint desire to continue to build on our excellent record of success and affords the confidence for the Group’s investment in growth.

Detailed below within the table, is the progress that has been made to date on those items and it also identifies where progress will continue during 2011/12 financial year.

Progressive Agenda Items contained within 2010 Agreement
Achievements To Date
In Progress with commitment to deliver by end of 2011/12
1 - Review of flexible labour model
Phase 1
Joint statement to change the status of a specified number of STC staff to Permanent contracts.
Phase 2
Joint statement on levels of OD’s and direct employed C&D drivers for a specified daily volume which will, once deployed at depot level reduce agency and courier resource
Phase 2
Agreement to be obtained to deploy and adopt the joint statement on resourcing mix principles for OD and C&D directly employed drivers at depot level.
Phase 3
National Agreement on a resourcing mix model to support growth ambitions beyond the specified daily volumes contained within the current joint statement
2 – Hubs Efficiencies
Discussions have commenced
Review of ongoing efficiencies within both hubs
3 – Improved Security Arrangements
Draft code of practice proposed
Agreement and deployment of code of practice
4 – IT Capability
Agreement and deployment of new handhelds with improved functionality
Introduction of new tracking point technology in depots and customer premises and the deployment of new software to support new product development
5 – Admin Review
Trials progressing for transferring calls from an internal supplier to depot admin teams together with the introduction of call looping within each PFW area.
Agreement for the transfer of customer calls/email and some administration from the internal supplier to PFW admin teams, where appropriate.
After implementation of this transfer to perform a review of resourcing within the depots.
6 – Depot revision procedures
Discussions have progressed with the aim to agree a set of principles to support depot revisions
Agreement on a depot revision procedure whilst ensuring current productivity levels and performance are protected.
7- Joint consultation on customers
Continued support of large customer implementations
Continued through new Table Of Success (TOS) approach
8 – Joint working on new market initiatives
Joint progress on secure product including exchange
Continued through new TOS approach
9 – Process for PFW employees on customer premises
Discussions have commenced
Continued through new TOS approach
10 – Network Capacity
Trials undertaken and outputs from these trials are being used to formulate a proposed way forward which is being progressed through a joint project team
Agreement and deployment of Risk Assessments and Safe Systems of Work for loading of trailers to improve our network capacity
11- Table of Success
TOS – National Agreement which reflects a revised approach and addresses the change in organisation structure
Deployment of the agreement/approach


Against that backdrop we are pleased to have arrived at the following negotiated settlement that incorporates two stages. Stage one, recognises the work already achieved through an increase to basic pay together with a lump sum which is a payment that recognises the commitment and anticipated delivery of the remainder of activity as detailed above. Stage two provides an opportunity to potentially reward the development of further joint initiatives provided they deliver benefits to the business and supports our growth ambitions.


AGREEMENT

Stage One

2.6% rise in all elements of pay including the £11 non-pensionable addition to basic pay, S/A, overtime, all allowances and pay ranges etc backdated to the 1st April 2011. In recognition of progress and performance achieved.

£600 lump sum paid to all employees, pro-rata to less than fulltime staff, upon acceptance of the agreement and in recognition to continue to progress those agenda items recorded in the table above. The lump sum reflects our joint commitment to deliver these initiatives.
An opportunity to obtain a maximum of £16 per week within the existing “First Time Delivery Bonus Scheme” by increasing the performance targetry. This reflects a potential increase of up to a maximum of £7 per week. The current targetry has been extended so that performance between 3% to 3.4% above target will pay a further £5 and performance of 3.5% and above will pay a further £2. Both parties accept that the success of the “First Time Delivery Scheme” has provided a genuine opportunity for realistic bonus achievement. It has driven long term and sustained motivation where unachievable goals would de-motivate. Against that backdrop both parties agree to review the new arrangements so as to ensure that the new maximum reward is genuinely attainable.


Stage Two

A further consolidated remuneration sum, equivalent to a weighted average of £67 will be applied to annual basic pay, pro-rata to less than fulltime staff, with full flowthrough as applied at stage one. This will be applied on development of a list detailing a number of agreed additional progressive agenda items. Both parties are committed to the development of a list of initiatives by end of Sept 2011, which will enable PFW to achieve improved financial performance.

As the initiatives are progressed and the benefits understood, joint discussions will take place to understand how these benefits could be shared in the form of an unconsolidated lump sum. It is recognised that the benefits would only be calculated based upon what has been delivered in year and would be paid when the savings materialise or when the flight path is certain to achieve benefits. The target for an unconsolidated lump sum per person, pro-rata to less than full time staff, is £400 that could be achieved at incremental stages but both parties recognise that this is dependent upon the additional initiatives identified being able to deliver savings/benefits, which would be shared, to support this payment. Therefore £400 is our ambition and both parties are committed to not only achieve this, but also recognise the potential for more.



PROGRESSIVE AGENDA

Following the successes achieved so far in the progressive agenda approach, both parties agree that it is extremely important that we continue to work together in identifying new ways of ensuring that Parcelforce is able to fully realise its growth ambitions that will ensure a healthy and secure future for its employees. This is best done by continuing to strengthen the strategic partnership built through the principles of ‘Table of Success’ and the sharing of ideas to develop consensus solutions to our ongoing challenges.

Both parties commit to continue to work on the areas that are still in progress from the agenda of the 2010 Agreement and to also start joint development and planning of further initiatives for the second stage of this award structure.

The second phase will firstly identify a joint list of initiatives that deliver further efficiencies consistent with the momentum of sustaining and improving the financial health of PFW, improving operational performance, maintaining a competitive edge and increasing market share, whilst recognising our mutual interest culture and the contribution made by employees. Also initiatives that will support the business strategy of continued growth through the introduction of a number of new products and future Advance Operations / IT capability.

We have also agreed to commence discussions on additional areas that require a revised agreement which include, but is not exhaustive:-

A new Central billing approach for Union Leave in Parcelforce
A refreshed bank holiday approach to ensure fair application of benefits across the varied shift patterns
A review of Bonus arrangements in our administration/clerical units.


The Operations Director Parcelforce Worldwide and the CWU National Officer will prioritise and oversee these initiatives/projects and ensure that they are progressed inline with the spirit and intent of the ‘Table of Success’ process.

This approach forms an integral part of any ongoing dialogue on the 'Progressive Agenda'.

Both parties are committed to the next pay/reward review discussions being concluded by and effective from 1st April 2012.








Terry Pullinger Dick Stead
Assistant Secretary Managing Director
CWU Parcelforce Worldwide


Date:

[smok3y666]

Thanks for that, looks good.I will print it off and take it in work tomorrow!

[the_damned]

Yeah, looks great!! A 1.9% pay cut with inflation and 600 quid to replace the 1400 they stole off of us the other month. I can barely contain myself.

Oh well

Ps. thanks for posting!

[smok3y666]

Yes, you're right, its s**t. What was I thinking?!?!?! I will quit my job and go work with 99% of other people in Stoke who are on £6/hour! Lets see, I earned £20800 last year working for Parcelforce with no overtime compare that to £13000 for those working on £6/hour. Why didn't I realise it sooner?

[the_damned]

People earning £6 pound an hour in Stoke didn't enter my head, would you believe?

You vote yes, i'll vote yes too. I understand it's the best the union can do under the circumstances. But I can't be ecstatic about loosing the colleague share money, and now being given the arse end of it but with further strings attached. A pay rise that yes, although okay considering what's going on for other people it is still a pay cut compared to the cost of living.

[tasape]

As i see it the strings are usually left wide open for interpretation for your local manager theirs and ours are totally different, its about time the union talked to the branches before agreeing paty deals ,they need to get a bigger picture of what is actually going on at depots ,
my big whinge is the fact that you may go out with 60 drops ,but then have 20 odd collections all time based,and non of this is considered, a collection is the same as a drop and should be counted as such, i have a 10 hour route a max of 60 is all i can deal with bearing in mind i have to drive 1 hour to my first drop 1 hour on the return to depot and im supposed to get a 1 hour lunch break yeah right !!!!!!
to bring back failed deliverys FU**s up the first time delivery bonus and other bonuses, we as a union need to stop and think where we are going as managers will be putting on more and more pressure to the drivers.

[smok3y666]

I worked on the vans last year for about 12 months and know how s**t it is. I was asked daily to do more and more and one day I came in to find out that I had been given an entire extra post code to deliver. I worked my dinner break and rushed my ass off just so I could finish for 3:30 and go home but that wasn't good enough for the managers. I even had the union rep on my case saying that the managers were right and I should be out til around 5pm. I started off with approx 60 deliveries and because I took my breaks when I was supposed and kept coming back in on time my work load started to increase. I now work in a warehouse for a large distribution company, Parcelforce have their own people there although it is not a Parcelforce warehouse.

The money in Stoke is poor, I can only think of JCB who pay similar money to PF but they are only setting on agency. If I can find another job with similar pay I would leave tomorrow and i'm looking every day. I'm not in the union because of what happened at my depot and I complained to head office. We have no union rep where I am and no managers bother us, perhaps maybe once a month. The only thing worth moaning about is the hours.