Fighting for Crewe

[Big Daz]

News
27 October 2008
Fighting for Crewe

CWU deputy general secretary Dave Ward pledged that the union will “fight every inch of the way” against Royal Mail’s mail centre closure programme at an open-air protest rally in Crewe on Saturday.

Around 500 postal workers, their families and supporters braved the driving rain to march through the town showing their determination to save jobs and protect vital public services.

And such is the strength of local feeling, that their campaign has won support from right across the community, local businesses, all parties on the town council and Crewe’s Member of Parliament all backing the CWU fight for jobs and justice.

Starting at Chester Square, demonstrators marched to the town’s Cenotaph in Earle Street, right through the busy town centre, where Saturday shoppers and shop workers stopped to applaud the protest.

With mail centre worker Dave Thorley banging out a lively rhythm on a huge bass drum at the head of the procession, and CWU members blowing whistles and waving placards demanding: “Keep jobs in Crewe” and “Fight for local services,” few could have missed the event.

And taking their place in the ranks alongside CWU members, were members of the local region of civil-service union PCS, supporting the postal workers’ struggle while also fighting their own campaign against the proposed closure of a local HMRC office.

After speeches from councillors John Hammond (Conservative) and Dave Williams (Labour), Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson and South Cheshire Chamber of Commerce chief executive John Dunning, PCS executive member Dominic McFadden expressed solidarity with the CWU and explained the threat to his members’ jobs.

Dave Ward pledged the support of the CWU for their fellow trade unionists in PCS and went on to thank supporters for turning out for the march.

With CWU members at Crewe, along with workers at 13 other centres across the country set to vote on strike action to save their jobs, Dave warned that Royal Mail’s plans would “destroy people’s lives and livelihoods.”

Looking back to the agreement that ended last year’s national dispute, he recalled: “Last year, we both signed up to change by agreement, but what we’re seeing now is change by dictat.”

In his own message to Royal Mail, Dave vowed: “We’re going to fight you every inch of the way. Until you do the right thing and sort out the mess you’ve got this company in.”

Unless the company changes course, halts its closure programme and sits down to serious negotiations with the CWU in order to reach a new national agreement, the mail centres ballot could, ultimately lead to a full, national industrial action ballot, he continued.


Cheshire No 1 branch secretary Steve Wright, who organised the event, thanked everyone for their support, concluding: “We will win!”

[dvbuk55]

How many times are we going to see that the CWU is going to fight tooth and nail over an issue only to find RM just steamroller ahead anyway and totally ignore the union at both national and local level? Is there any issue that the CWU would find the membership willing to support a strike at anything other than a local level - I don't think there is. There should be a concerted effort to encourage an action of non-cooperation with all change until such time as RM will come to the table and negotiate change.