Royal Mail condemns CWU threat of further strike action

[TrueBlueTerrier]

I've got a feeling this is going to be a busy thread:

http://www.ipc.be/index.php?option=com_ ... 5&Itemid=0

12 September 2007 - Royal Mail Group

Royal Mail is extremely disappointed that, despite a four week "period of calm" to allow talks to take place, the Communication Workers Union continues to ignore the stark challenges facing the company and has announced they will call further strikes.

The CWU’s decision is in spite of Royal Mail offering the union a short term resolution to the dispute, within the amount of money available for pay this year and at no extra cost to the company, as well as a longer term solution which we believe is in the interests of our people, our customers and the future of business.

During the talks we also made it clear to the CWU that our clear aim in consulting on pensions is to protect our existing people’s pensions as far as possible and not increase their contributions - while the union wants to keep the scheme open to new recruits, even though they know it will disadvantage the postmen and postwomen who already work for the company.

Royal Mail has also offered that any postmen and postwomen affected by changes in their starting time because of new EU transport legislation will keep their early start allowance for as long as they continue in their current job even though they will be starting later. Our aim in making this offer is to ensure the postmen and postwomen affected do not lose money as a result of the change - but the union is opposed to this offer.

The union’s stance on such issues does not reflect the views and interests of the vast majority of our people but rather the interest of activists within the CWU. We will be talking to our people over the next few days as we decide how to make progress on these issues

We have now been negotiating with the CWU over pay and flexibility since March 2007. Royal Mail can no longer delay the next steps in modernising the business to enable it to compete on an equal footing with other operators and will now begin to make the changes which have been discussed with our people and our trade unions for many months. It has become clear during this time that certain elements within the CWU are determined to drive on with this dispute irrespective of the damage it is causing to our people, our customers and the future of Royal Mail.

Royal Mail would like to thank both the TUC and ACAS, both of which have been involved in our talks with the CWU over recent weeks. As ever, we remain willing to meet with the union at any time.

Royal Mail has a unique opportunity in its history to invest in its service and improve its efficiency and competitiveness as a result of the £1.2 billion funding made available by its shareholder, the Government, through a commercial loan. It is time now to grasp this opportunity on behalf of our customers and our people - Royal Mail is already losing business because our costs and therefore our prices are too high and our business customers are choosing to go elsewhere.

The facts remain the same:

• The mail market in the UK is declining by 2.5% per year
• Royal Mail has lost 40% of bulk business mail to rival postal operators
• Overall this year, rivals will handle one in five of all letters posted in the UK
• Our rivals are 40% more efficient not because their people work harder but because they have already modernised - as we must now do - and have much more technology
• Our rivals pay their people 25% less than we do at Royal Mail

Source: Royal Mail

[vigilante]

OOHH GOD IT'S LIKE A SCRATCHED RECORD.
IM FED UP WITH HEARING THAT SH*T FROM THEM.
YEAH LETS BLAIM THE PROBLEM ON ' CWU ACTICISTS'---WE ARE ALL THE CWU AND WE ARE ALL AGAINST YOU---TOSSERS

[leelatic]

Why do they never mention that we are still delivering this 40% of business mail they've lost?

[Stormproof]

Extremely disappointed........extremely disappointed..........extremely disappointed................blah, blah, blah

CHANGE THE F***ING RECORD

[frankie]

[RedRich]

Royal Mail had a unique oportunity alright to invest not only in the business but also in its employees.It has chose to show complete disregard for its workforce in its outrageous statements concerning them being overpaid and underworked, in trying to sabotage our pension and its utter lies regarding this whole dispute.It could have taken the workforce with them on its modernisation crusade but no.Now all i feel is utter contempt for the men at the top and couldnt give a toss about Royal Mail.

[madelin4]

The bit about the pensions that royal mail want to keep there current employees on the same pension but not the new starters coming in dont get it... hench, more reason to get the old crowd out to save them even more money

[IWW Fellow Worker]

The union’s stance on such issues does not reflect the views and interests of the vast majority of our people but rather the interest of activists within the CWU. We will be talking to our people over the next few days as we decide how to make progress on these issues

'Our people'? Who are they referring to? They keep using this term, and I have no idea who or what they mean by it. I can only assume they mean the brainwashed office boys who somehow imagine they are 'managers'.

[L Tommo]

IWW mate the old "WERE IN THIS TOGETHER" BULLSHITE COMES OUT AGAIN FOR ALL TO SEE...

I wonder how long that will last until its... THE CWU are Bullys and living in the 70s...?

When they speak for me i will be dead and then i will haunt em from the grave...

lies lies lies lies n more lies!!!

DONT PIGIEON HOLE ME AND DONT PUT THE BLAME ON A FEW... WE ARE MANY... 77% OF THE WORKFORCE... Not just a few militant rabble....

OUT

[frankie]

[stephen500]

• Our rivals pay their people 25% less than we do at Royal Mail

Source: Royal Mail
[/size][/quote]
This is the big one...so how are they going to reduce our pay by 25%.
1) Simplified allowances
Out goes money for machine maintainance (imps etc)
Out goes Phg money....note this has grandfather rights delivery postpersons!
Restructure night allowances?
cease scheduled attendences and replace by o/t
cease weekend working as much as possible
increase households done without pay

[IWW Fellow Worker]

IWW mate the old "WERE IN THIS TOGETHER" BULLSHITE COMES OUT AGAIN FOR ALL TO SEE...

I wonder how long that will last until its... THE CWU are Bullys and living in the 70s...?

When they speak for me i will be dead and then i will haunt em from the grave...

lies lies lies lies n more lies!!!

DONT PIGIEON HOLE ME AND DONT PUT THE BLAME ON A FEW... WE ARE MANY... 77% OF THE WORKFORCE... Not just a few militant rabble....

OUT

Leighton used to use that 'activists' label quite a lot when he first took over. It was as though he was trying to convice a couple of hundred thousand union members that we were all daft enough to be led around by a tiny minority of people with a political agenda. The wild cat strikes of 2003 put paid to that idea when the workers took matters into their own hands. He must see things as being a bit desperate to start using it again. He's not the first to use that label and he won't be the last. I only wish the CWU would use the correct label for maagers including Burke and Hare at the top: Parasites.

[BELIAL]

Hope they keep producing these gems Iget the feeling support for IA rockets with each one

[postie28]

" does not reflect the views and interests of the VAST MAJORITY of our people "

is that why about 98% of us have been striking then ?.
these two f*** wits must be living in cloud cuckoo land.
just f*** off the pair of you. :lfo :lfo :lfo :lfo :lfo :lfo :cfo :cfo :cfo :cfo :cfo :cfo

[trythat]

[quote="]

'Our people'? Who are they referring to? They keep using this term, and I have no idea who or what they mean by it. I can only assume they mean the brainwashed office boys who somehow imagine they are 'managers'.[/quote]

It gets on my tits as well, we're employee's, I'm nothing to do with them, I come in do a hard days work for crap pay and then go home.

I'm a EMPLOYEE nothing more nothing less.