Postal strike dates to be set tomorrow

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Postal strike dates to be set tomorrow

8:19pm Sunday 11th October 2009

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By Echo Reporter »


LEADERS of 120,000 postal workers are tomorrow expected to set dates for nationwide strikes in a bitter row over jobs, pay and services which will cripple mail deliveries across the country.

The postal executive of the Communication Workers Union will meet to discuss when to call out their members following a huge vote in favour of industrial action.

The union will have to give seven days' notice of a strike so the first walk-out could be on October 19.

Options before the leadership include calling all 120,000 Royal Mail workers out on strike or deciding on a rolling programme of action involving different groups of workers such as delivery and sorting office staff taking action on different days.

This tactic would maximise disruption to post deliveries while minimising the effect on the pay of workers involved in strikes.

The union is also expected to call for mediation to try to resolve the long-running row following months of talks which have failed to break the deadlock.

Further talks are due to be held later this week but there is little sign of a breakthrough.

The union insists that Royal Mail is imposing changes onto postal workers, cutting jobs and pay which officials maintain is leading to a worsening service.

Royal Mail denies the charges and counters that managers are merely implementing an agreed deal between the two sides to modernise the service which was drawn up after the last national dispute two years ago.

Members of the union voted by three to one last week to go on strike following months of regional stoppages which had caused huge delay of deliveries in parts of the country.

Business groups have warned that a national strike will have a huge impact on companies trying to recover from the recession.