National Postal Strikes Affect Small Businesses

[Geezer]

http://www.freshbusinessthinking.com/bu ... Businesses

21/09/09

By Francesca James


The Communication Workers Union has sent out ballots to union members and workers at Royal Mail to decide whether or not to press ahead with a national strike against modernisation plans.

Both sides are in agreement that modernisation is both necessary and essential if the company is to survive in commercial terms but the long standing argument over whether the service should remain wholly in the public sector lies at the heart of discussions

CWU leader Billy Hayes has previously suggested that the Royal Mail should take a similar model to that of the BBC and that it should not be privatised:

Lord Mandelson on the other hand, working from recommendations set out in the Hooper Report, proposed to secure a commercial partner for the company to give it the drive...

...of a privately owned business and the investment needed to transform the service, whilst the government retained the larger share. In the end, the strategic partner was not found and Lord Mandelsons plan is still on hold.

Despite the media insinuating that the potential strikes are pay related, postal workers deny this.

Workers at Royal Mail have already staged local strikes across the country since early summer. The CWU recently claimed that its strikes so far had caused a backlog of nearly 22 million items of undelivered mail. Royal Mail dismissed this saying the actual figure was in fact, closer to 4 million.

The deputy general secretary of the CWU, David Ward, said, "Without agreement there can be no successful change in Royal Mail. This is a simple message which Royal Mail management needs to take on board. Postal workers are striking to defend future services as well as for jobs and modern conditions."

"We believe that Royal Mail management has completely mishandled the current situation. Disruption is hurting small businesses and other consumers, but postal workers are suffering more than anyone in the current dispute. Small businesses stand to suffer more with reduced services in the future, if Royal Mail doesn't reach a national agreement."

Royal Mail has been experiencing a steady decline in postal volumes of about 10 per cent annually. They claim that the CWU is striking against proposals that were already agreed upon in a 2007 deal and have deemed the threats of a national strike as "wholly irresponsible".