Postal Workers Prompt Public Anger

[Geezer]

http://www.hellmail.co.uk/postalnews/te ... &zoneid=10


8 August 2009 by Mark White - © Hellmail.co.uk

To say that the CWU lacks focus is putting it mildly. No one is entirely sure why postal workers are actually striking. Not only are we in a recession, the list of reasons why the CWU is unhappy seems to extend by the day and varies enormously from one delivery office to another, and no doubt another five gripes, including the lack of kit-kat bars in the vending machine, have been added even as you read this.

This confusion has been so widespread, the CWU has had to send out flyers to members, outlining the reasons why. This hasn't stopped individual union reps delivering their own unique slant on things, including recently, a regional flyer that advocated hanging for anyone who attempted to cross picket lines. The lack of clarity and seeming endless additional reasons for widespread action has split opinion on whether the CWU is there to represent members or more worried about it's own survival. Clearly any downsizing at Royal Mail will have a direct effect on union finances, if not any perceived power, and many suspect this will move from a confrontation between the CWU and Royal Mail to yet another confrontation with central government, using postal workers as a battering ram ahead of a Conservative victory at the next election.

The CWU knows this is its last and final opportunity to stamp it's foot, and with the Conservatives keen on complete privatisation, the union will be keen to step up the action by whatever means. The 'protection of services' angle seems to have disappeared entirely and was only pulled out as a last-minute thought in the last dispute to 'get the public on side'. Faced with a backlash from both domestic and business customers across the press, the union has given up on that idea altogether and settled for trying to disrupt everyones mail in the hope of bullying the country into giving way to its demands.

With almost every industry asking employees to accept a pay freeze or even a pay cut, the CWU, ignoring the recession, the massive pension deficit and a marked drop in mail volume, seems intent on keeping Royal Mail in public ownership and letting the tax payer foot the bill.

The one big difference between this and the 2007 dispute is back then, the union could rely to some extent on public anger over post office closures. This time the public are not sympathetic. Furious yes, but thats because postal workers have chosen to hit everyone around them when jobs are scarce and the free flow of mail and small packages is crucial to our ability to get the economy moving again.

© Hellmail.co.uk (18 August 2009)

[General Mannerheim]

YAWNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN.
Same old rubbish.

[norbert]

I think somebody is stamping his foot because the union did a flyer re one of his articles , that RM were using as propaganda

Makes the extreme left stuff look objective - somebody is getting worried - p**s poor version of Richard Littlejohn

Did somebody from 148 Old St threaten to break his fingers as he typed this out on the lap top - at least he's learned to use the MS Word spellchecker this time - Try and use the grammar feature next time Mark - you know those squiggly green lines under the words and punctuation suggestions .

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Another Ill-informed, biased, politicly driven, one sided, childish, unprofessional and pointless article by Mr White. At least he is consistent.

[pickaname]

If post is so crucial to get the economy moving again how come Royal Mail are making savage cuts?

[BELIAL]

My mate Dave says aliens will take advantage of this strike, and Steve who wrote something once said if they did they could deliver stuff cheaper,and Mark ,who is a real authority and who's opinion is super heavyweight cos he's written things down 15 times and both Steve and Dave think he's right, has forgotten the message but unions are bad whatever and profit is much better than jobs

[TrueBlueTerrier]

My mate Dave says aliens will take advantage of this strike, and Steve who wrote something once said if they did they could deliver stuff cheaper,and Mark ,who is a real authority and who's opinion is super heavyweight cos he's written things down 15 times and both Steve and Dave think he's right, has forgotten the message but unions are bad whatever and profit is much better than jobs

[BELIAL]

My mate Dave says aliens will take advantage of this strike, and Steve who wrote something once said if they did they could deliver stuff cheaper,and Mark ,who is a real authority and who's opinion is super heavyweight cos he's written things down 15 times and both Steve and Dave think he's right, has forgotten the message but unions are bad whatever and profit is much better than jobs

Nice to know we ain't alone brother And back to the original post, got asked five times today by the public WTF I was up to , cos some news do da suggested we were all out, "are you scabbing?"
Course it took time to explain which f****d up the lapsing, but curiously enough not a one congratulated me on strike breaking .
Two comments were revealing ,"if Mandy says you're in the wrong, you must have a bloody good case, cos we know all about that lying crook"

[Stormproof]

All my customers that I have spoken to totally agree with our action, one of them was so angry with the government etc I thought he might join us on the picket line today

[cityfc]

What a plonker,are you really Mandy in disguise

[pinstripe]

"With almost every industry asking employees to accept a pay freeze or even a pay cut, the CWU, ignoring the recession,"

That's true but, 'almost every industry' isn't making a healthy profit through these tough times and paying their senior managers obscene bonuses as well.

"My mate Dave says aliens will take advantage of this strike, and Steve who wrote something once said if they did they could deliver stuff cheaper,and Mark ,who is a real authority and who's opinion is super heavyweight cos he's written things down 15 times and both Steve and Dave think he's right, has forgotten the message but unions are bad whatever and profit is much better than jobs"

A very valid argument Belial and one in which I can't find any flaws.

"If post is so crucial to get the economy moving again how come Royal Mail are making savage cuts?"
Too keep up with the decline in mail volumes because of e-mail and text messages, apparently.

"are you really Mandy in disguise"

That made me chuckle.