From the Pay Talks thread…

[SimonLS]

>>>Branches, Reps and members will see that Royal Mail has made a number of significant moves towards the union, covering the following:

·RMG has agreed to immediately remove the agency staff used to cover the Christmas peak and strike action.]l
>>>

Worded very carefully. Surely Xmas casuals gone any day and no one was hired specifically for strike cover?

[2chorizon]

Christmas Casuals are not agency staff, they are Royal Mail.

[SimonLS]

Exactly. So that whole line is a bit of a fib.

[2chorizon]

I think there were 11,000 agency workers put into the Delivery Offices to cover the strikes, from various agencies and inc Angard and RHYDE app based couriers etc

I think its them they are reffering too.

PS the RM xmas casuals that dont get binned on xmas eve usually stay until the 20th jan cut-off (then join Angards if they want to stay)

[SimonLS]

So does that imply Angard workers no longer have a job? Or just not being booked?

[Tibtab39]

I think the statement refers to Angard workers.

On Saturday, I was at a mail centre and there was practically nothing to do for the last 3 hours. Maybe they just over recruited for that day or maybe the mail volume is so reduced along with the machines that they'll now cut worker numbers way back.
There were signs of the above pre strike.

[SimonLS]

I’ve had one 4hr shift this week. One booked next week. Pity because I enjoy the job and it’s a good crew at my MC.

[tabact]

Hardly any shifts is normal at my MC once Christmas is out the way. Nothing booked in advance and last minute emails for shifts is pretty much how the whole of last year was. Christmas casuals will be kept on for another couple of weeks as well which doesn't help. Mail volumes are very low as well currently and RM staff getting no overtime so logically you shouldn't need agency staff.

[SimonLS]

Just wondering if I have a job anymore. Nothing from Angard as yet.

[xUzi786]

my friend who works for royal mail informed me it is only the casuals NOT angard staff, plus i have been booked 6 days for this week now the casuals have moved on. I do not like how they prioritised the casuals over angard staff this christmas, when we have been working at my site for years, thats discrimination, so im happy they got rid of them.

[SimonLS]

Yeah getting barely a shift in Nov so the casuals could do the job badly was a real kick.
That sounds promising for Angard staff ta.

[SpacePhoenix]

my friend who works for royal mail informed me it is only the casuals NOT angard staff, plus i have been booked 6 days for this week now the casuals have moved on. I do not like how they prioritised the casuals over angard staff this christmas, when we have been working at my site for years, thats discrimination, so im happy they got rid of them.

Some of the casuals will have been moved over to Angard

[Lockardian]

It mainly applies to extra agency staff who were hired specifically for strike cover in MCs and DOs - many not via Angard. The situation regarding long term Angard casuals remains the same, certainly for the time being. If Angard aren’t not getting shifts it’s purely due to the workload (and possibly still some RM Christmas casuals knocking about until 20th).

By the way I had a RM Tracked parcel delivered today by someone in civvie clothes driving a black van. Was he likely an agency driver from the DO?