swindon mail centre

[UNION IVOR]

POSTAL workers in Swindon plan to strike again at the end of the month.

About 870 employees are expected to abandon their posts for 24 hours on September 29 and 30.

The workers are under a legal requirement to take action or they would have to rehold a ballot, said Chris Rye, branch secretary of the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU).

The workers have already been on strike this month, with most of the 800 employees at the Dorcan mail centre and 70 drivers at the logistics depot next door taking action.

The drivers have refused to work in protest six times this month.

Mr Rye said: “The public should be behind us because the issues at Royal Mail are the same as those happening in their industries.

“Just because there is a credit crunch doesn’t mean people should stop fighting for their rights.

“We have got contracts with terms and conditions and we don’t want them eroded.

“Royal Mail is in profit – there is a limit to how flexible you can be and how much you can modernise.”

Even more Swindon workers, including postmen and women, are now voting on whether another strike should take place after October.

More than 1,800 staff have the chance to vote on future industrial action in a ballot, ending on October 8.

Royal Mail attacked the CWU’s ballot yesterday, saying it was affecting customers.

It said nine million letters or parcels have been delayed out of a daily mailbag of 75 million. Most of the delays have occurred in London.

Royal Mail managing director Mark Higson said: “While the amount of delayed mail is a fraction of the daily mailbag we are concerned about every single letter and we apologise wholeheartedly to customers for the difficulties cause by the CWU’s strikes.

“It beggars belief that CWU chief Dave Ward says that the disruption caused by the CWU strike is hurting customers yet at the same time calls a national strike ballot to step up the damage they are already inflicting on customers big and small.”

The company said mail volumes are down by about 10 per cent year on year due to competition from email and the web.

The CBI also weighed in yesterday, voicing their concern.

John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general, said: “The localised strikes have caused regrettable disruption. We have noticed a particular impact on small companies and those in areas like direct mail.

“Many firms are struggling in the economic downturn, making them particularly vulnerable. A wider national postal strike could make a critical difference to some companies, and risk lasting damage to them.

“We very much hope that a strike will be avoided.”
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