CWU THREATENS TO DISAFFILIATE FROM LABOUR

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.socialistunity.com/?p=3539" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

COMMUNICATION Workers Union leader Billy Hayes warned the government on Friday that plans to bulldoze through job cuts and privatisation at Royal Mail could lead the union to disaffiliate from Labour.

Mr Hayes said that plans to allow a private firm to take a minority stake in the business were straining relationships with the government “towards breaking point.”

The union already has an agreed policy to ballot members on disaffiliation from Labour should Royal Mail be privatised and officials expect fresh calls for action in response to plans announced by Business Secretary Lord Mandelson.

Mr Hayes said that privatisation of Royal Mail was a totemic issue for postal unions.

“The current government plans are a defining moment in the relationship between the unions and the government. The relationship will be severely strained towards breaking point,” he said.

He spoke out after plans were revealed to hold a two-day summit between Royal Mail and union leaders next month to discuss modernising the business, which is expected to lead to job cuts.

The CWU warned that Royal Mail is intending to cut up to 16,000 jobs, or one in 10 of its workforce, to reduce costs by 10 per cent.

Royal Mail chief executive Adam Crozier, who earns £3 million a year, boasted last month that all parts of the group were making money for the first time in 20 years.

Internal Royal Mail documents reveal the extent of proposed savings. One reads: “All teams have been given a 10 per cent cash reduction target and so we need to focus not only on where we can deliver an excellent service with fewer roles but also opportunities to spend less cash.”

Another says: “All costs are being reviewed, including staff, vehicle and administration costs.”

The firm is also writing to staff offering three options - voluntary redundancy, part-time work or switching to another office.

Information packs include a ready reckoner so staff can work out how much money they would get if they take redundancy. The minimum is six months pay, while a 57-year-old with 20 years service would receive two years pay.

Those opting for part-time jobs would have their hours cut from 40 a week to fewer than 25.

However, CWU deputy leader Dave Ward accused bosses of jumping the gun by writing to staff a week before a scheduled meeting with the union to discuss ways to save money.

“We are not opposed to modernisation but these are random savings which have not been properly worked out,” he said.

“They have nothing to do with modernisation, they are panic measures which will hit the quality of service.”

Mr Hayes added: “Coupled with planned job losses and office closures in Royal Mail, the government’s actions are placing a huge strain on the unions’ relationship with the Labour Party.”

The CWU last disaffiliated from Labour in 1927 after the general strike and was out of the party for 21 years.

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15 Comments »

1. I used to be a postie and CWU member, good to see the union try and use a bit of muscle here, though be honest this has been on the cards ever since the CWU rolled over and accepted ‘marketisation’.

Comment by Nick — 8 February, 2009 @ 4:27 pm


2. Let’s hope this isn’t an idle threat and CWU has the balls to do it. New Labour is no friend of the working class. In fact, it’s got away with policies that even Thatcher would have been proud of.

Now let’s form a new broad-left workers party (http://WWW.CNWP" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) and consign New Labour to the dustbin of history.

Comment by Henry — 8 February, 2009 @ 5:23 pm

3. If Hicks wins Unite GS election, and the CWU follow through on this threat, then the move towards a new TU sponsored party might be significantly closer. With a wider body of TUists involved, Bob Crow might feel a little less scared of a new formation being a small bag of far left out-fits.

Although, however worthy, the CNWP will only be a small part of the move toward a new party / coalition. I’m sure the SP would drop it as soon as that bigger vehicle comes along.

Comment by Jobba — 8 February, 2009 @ 5:36 pm

4. This was a decision taken at CWU conference last year. Hayes does not want to disaffiliate but is under huge pressure from the postal section of the union. The motion passed last year committed the union to ballot if the government continued its drive to privatize the post office.

It will need a rank and file campaign to push the union’s leadership into a ballot on disaffiliation and a campaign to win it as I suspect Hayes will be at best agnostic.

Comment by Chris C — 8 February, 2009 @ 5:41 pm


5. Ccn we clarify please
Are we saying that disaffiliation from the Labour Party is a GOOD thing
No political representation!
No contact at conference level!

Comment by Alan Sharples — 8 February, 2009 @ 7:07 pm


6. This is all bollocks. I knew Hayes when I worked in the post office in the early 1980s in Liverpool. He is a Labourite through and through and also a born union bureaucrat. Even before labour came to power, he has always pulled the punches of the CWU/UCW in relation to privatisation. They could have built a genuine anti-privatisation campaign years ago becuase of the impact of the attacks on the PO amongst the working class.

Instead, Haye’s strategy was to wait for a Labour victory. He’ll still be waiting after the P.O. is in private ownership.

Comment by Tricksymix — 8 February, 2009 @ 7:09 pm


7. “Ccn we clarify please
Are we saying that disaffiliation from the Labour Party is a GOOD thing
No political representation!
No contact at conference level!”

After 11 years of right wing, neo-liberal government, the answer is yes.

Comment by Tricksymix — 8 February, 2009 @ 7:11 pm


8. The task at the moment is for all of us to support the CWU campaign to stop privatisation of Royal Mail from happening.
Early Day Motion 428, opposing the sell-off, has been submitted by Morecambe and Lunesdale MP Geraldine Smith and has so far been signed by over 100 MPs. Check the list of signatories at http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetai ... ESSION=899" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and, if your MP is not there, contact her or him and urge them to sign. Ask your family, friends etc to do the same.
An e-petition has been submitted to the Number Ten website at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/Royal-Mail-Sale/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Visit the site and sign it and urge your family, firends and colleagues to sign up.
Let’s support the CWU in trying to stop this from happening at all.

Comment by Karl Stewart — 8 February, 2009 @ 7:42 pm


9. Under new labour affiliated unions already have ‘No political representation’ and there may be ‘contact at conference level’ but that contact does not allow trade unions to influence policy one jot.

Comment by paulm — 8 February, 2009 @ 7:42 pm


10. >Are we saying that disaffiliation from the Labour Party is a GOOD thingAfter 11 years of right wing, neo-liberal government, the answer is yes.

Comment by Alan Sharples — 8 February, 2009 @ 8:54 pm


11. >After 11 years of right wing, neo-liberal government, the answer is yes.

Are we saying that disaffiliation from the Labour Party is a GOOD thing

Comment by Alan Sharples — 8 February, 2009 @ 8:57 pm


12. I can see the point you’re making, but this applies to ANY union.
So logically, all unions should disaffiliate.
This is a very serious demand.

It would mean the complete collapse of the Labour Party.
Even the SWP, which has been consistently opposed to any form of entryism, doesn’t have this policy.
There is no structure, no organisation, no leadership to take the place of the Labour Party.

We haven’t thought this through - it has to be the beer talking!

Comment by Alan Sharples — 8 February, 2009 @ 8:58 pm


13. Ha ha ha The complete collapse of the Labour Party - how terrible! Would you be so concerned about the complete collapse of the Tories - is there any real difference? But more importantly if the unions stopped funding the labour party other organisations would spring up - come on wake up and smell the coffee!

Comment by Clive — 8 February, 2009 @ 10:28 pm


14. The argument that unions should not fund the Labour party is not to say unions should not fund MPs who are pro-union…

Indeed, unions which have departed New Labour still fund Labour MPs who have a pro-worker track record.

Comment by Charlie Marks — 8 February, 2009 @ 11:44 pm


15. But the way we should be looking at it, is to encourage the unions to take a greater indeendent political position in the interests of the working class.

Whether or not that best involves, affiliation or disaffiliation to the Labour party is not a one size fits all strategy; and will vary from union to union.

What we should be opposing is passive bank-rolling of the Labour party, without the union trying to exert political influence.

Comment by Andy Newman — 8 February, 2009 @ 11:49 pm

[Barry Trotter]

after that one eyed scottish idiots comments during last years strikes I say get shot of the labour party. Alright I'll apologise for the 'scottish idiot' bit jock.

[k979aaa]

after that one eyed scottish idiots comments during last years strikes I say get shot of the labour party. Alright I'll apologise for the 'scottish idiot' bit jock.

He is an idiot and he ani't got no vision but he is no scot.

[Night Tonic]

Gordon not bothered by loss of funding. Far more worried that damage to RM would be greater if he does nowt. Its the last bit of ammo in CWU's toolkit but its not ruffling them at all. It'll still happen. Share the sentiment wholeheartedly, but not the optimism in this instance.

[The FraudSquad]

They wont get to the disaffiliation stage.....this policy will die a death, Mandelson will go, and it will be shelved for a couple of years to be brought up again by the new conservative goverment...........except by then the labour party will mysteriously backtrack and oppose any privatisation partial or otherwise

[Broxi51]

I think we should go ahead and disaffiliate NOW. Labour seem intent on pushing through the part privatisation which somehow is translated as a wholly public company by McFadden. They have shown their true colours so I say stuff them. Let them rot in the wilderness with less financial backing. Perhaps they can turn their begging bowls to the banks that they saved with our money. Gordon Brown has said we should not reward failure. Well the biggest failure this country has seen in some time resides at No.10 Downing Street and we should all listen to Gordon and pull the plug on the money from the CWU.
Let the lesson start at the very top.

[Night Tonic]

Policy won't die. Too widely supported by Conservative and Liberals, not to mention cabinet. They don't take any notice of the Mirror either, which frequently gets it wrong.

[DGP1]

Policy won't die. Too widely supported by Conservative and Liberals, not to mention cabinet. They don't take any notice of the Mirror either, which frequently gets it wrong.

You have to be the most negative person I've ever met, always picking up the negative parts of any argument and rarely putting anything positve in.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

[DGP1]

[Barry Trotter]

after that one eyed scottish idiots comments during last years strikes I say get shot of the labour party. Alright I'll apologise for the 'scottish idiot' bit jock.

He is an idiot and he ani't got no vision but he is no scot.

aye he's a scot,thats how he's such a tightwad and always looked half pished oan the buckie.

TRANSLATION..... Yes he is scottish thats how he never gets his wallet out and always look like he is drunk on buckfast.

[The FraudSquad]

Policy won't die. Too widely supported by Conservative and Liberals, not to mention cabinet. They don't take any notice of the Mirror either, which frequently gets it wrong.

sorry pal It will die, Labour will pull the plug on it or at the very least put it on the backburner permanently to save mandelsons blushes

[Night Tonic]

Lets hope you're right.

[DGP1]

Lets hope you're right.

That's better see, it's not too difficult to be a bit positive every once in a while.

[Night Tonic]

Nothing to do with being 'happy'. Its about being a realist instead of being brainwashed by tabloids and CWU handouts. Far too much 'everythings safe in Dave & Billy land' type optimism over last two years. Love my job, always have but the CWU has been all mouth for a long while. No one takes it seriously these days. least of all Mandelson.