Why I will be crossing the picket line.

[dvbuk55]

What , if anything does this rep do...? Does he go to Area meetings and gladly claim his exspenses,his honorarium...etc Probably does and yet he does fuk all for you and your members...! Does he ever have a members meeting with the 6 of you and keep you's up to date with current events in the union...? You and your fellow members should serve a vote of 'no confidence' and get shot of the no-user...! Maybe one of your fellow members could up-take the position , might even encourage others to join....sounds like it's him that's keeping the whole office in the dark...!! How are the other staff supposed to see the benefits of being a union member , when this clown is working through a strike...!!

I agree,i blame him for the lack of union support,he does attend area meeting and sometimes we have leaflets left on our frames. Can't remember last time we had meeting with him though. I think hes lost interest since the revision of duties,he did his bit and got his walk just the way he wants it. Glad i found this site to get info,i've fired a few questions at him and taken him unawares. Bet he's wondering why i'm so informed all of a sudden!

Well you know what they say about a little knowledge! You only need to go to the downloads section and the agreements, as they are, are there for everyone to read.

[confusednewpostie]

Hey all,

Newbie member and postman of one year.
Ogg i have read your post, and the replies with great intensity!!
I joined the CWU at my induction after being told a brief array of reasons as to why i should and decided to do so.
My issue lies with the people on here saying their workload etc has increased over the years they have been in service.
I have joined royal mail as the workloads have being what they are, and just now that seems the norm for me.
I cant but help think the proposed strike action does nothing to help the situation (especially in the current economic climate), and have read ALL the posts in this thread to find what good can possibly come of this strike action??
With so many finnancial commitments the SAME as ALL the others, i cant help but think some of the people on here have delusions of grandure when they post comments like "i am losing £ex amount per day" as if their somehow better than someone who choses not to strike and is WORKING to support their current standard of living.
People on here seem INTENT on making it OK to loose money by not being at work, THIS IS NOT THE CASE!!
Royal Mail has said that they are going to employ 30,000 casual staff over christmas, double what they normally do!
With ALL par-takers invloved in strike action being banned from overtime entitlemtent, how can current strikers advocate the loss of wages.
As the main roylmailchat news points out pay is no the main point of strike action, but according to the news and CUSTOMERS, this is why we are striking!
I expect many of the replies to this will be well why are you in the union, and get out etc!
Why should i though, i agree with them negotiating on my behalf for better pay and condtions and being a resource i can call on should i ever have to, after all i do contribute to them on a weekly basis.
However that doesn't mean i have to agree with ALL their policies and for anyone wondering i voted NO on strike action.
Like ogg, i am just trying to be as honest as possible in my post, i have not made my decision 100% yet and as a member of the CWU post 2007 strike action, i feel VERY letdown on being kept informed on exactly WHY they want me as a member of their union to STRIKE!

[Turpin]

CONFUSEDNEWPOSTIE try looking at your contract terms I am resonably sure it will not be a LONG/TERM one. That should be reason enough. SO for that reason alone I will take my place on the line Best of luck.

[Sci_Dog]

confusednewpostie Think about whenever your asked to do 9 hours work in 8 hours. You will be faced with the conduct code cause you won't be able to do it. It's not because you can't do it but because Royal Mail think they can and will walk all over you and your terms and conditions.

[confusednewpostie]

CONFUSEDNEWPOSTIE try looking at your contract terms I am resonably sure it will not be a LONG/TERM one. That should be reason enough. SO for that reason alone I will take my place on the line Best of luck.

Nope!
I am on a permanent contract, one i would like to KEEP!
Once again people making assumptions on peoples personal circumstances!

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Hess - you obviously ignored this post http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... t=20007now" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; please read it and follow its suggestions and more importantly the rules . Especially about name calling people on the opposite side of your position.

[traww]

............May I enquire if any of you here are or have been local union reps yourselves? Have you spent almost four years pursuing a thankless task simply to do your bit for the office? Have you had to spend entire evenings emailing correspondence, or chasing atos for colleagues, or representing colleagues during a stage meeting? Have you had to break off delivery to attend an important negotiation for an hour before returning for said delivery, for no pay, nothing at all? Are you aware a rep can claim fifty quid a year but only if he attends every single meeting? miss just the one and forget it. Would you have the patience to cope with colleagues domestic problems and mediate between them and management before you've even taken your coat off? Would you, time and time again stand up for your office (with valid results) influencing management to drop the day's absorbtion due to high mail volumes? Could you even have the time to spot colleagues struggling with a new frame and insist they receive help.........

Quote edited

Could be barking up the wrong tree but ............ is Ogg a RM plant? Placed to antagonise and divide?

I call the people i work with Workmates, RM and Ogg call us all colleagues?

Just a thought.

[HESS]

OK....I get it..!!! You can understand how hard it is to keep it clean with workers(sometimes cwu) quite proudly stating their gonna work on a strike day....????? Aint easy....!!!

[Turpin]

CONFUSEDNEWPOSTIE Should have another look dont think your seeing it ! Sounds to me just like your already over the wrong side of the line have a good one BROTHER. regards TURPIN

[Turpin]

HESS he has his reason or point of view he has his right what he may not have is a job or if he does it will be on Royal Mails Terms me thinks theres more to CONFUSEDNEWMANGAER sorry CONFUSEDNEWPOSTIE keep the faith BRO TURPIN

[confusednewpostie]

OK....I get it..!!! You can understand how hard it is to keep it clean with workers(sometimes cwu) quite proudly stating their gonna work on a strike day....????? Aint easy....!!!

You think it's an easy decision for us either?!

Really doesn't help though when we come on and post our REASONS and feel like we have to justify ourselves to say why we are choosing to work, and what do we get in return?
One word replies, name calling and expletives that do nothing, to further educate the NEW posties within royal mail without strike history in their working career or help them make a decision on what to do.
Let's see this "solidarity" and all for one everyone sticking together in royal mail, or is that just for the ones in the clique that is the CWU?

[peejay14]

I will be working as usual. I am not a member of the union. I enjoy my job as the local postman. I value my job and my customers. I have only been working for the company for 17 months, and I find the job very hard to do. Both the work load and the timescale are difficult to achieve, and performing to the satisfaction of both my managers and my customers, as well as the scrutiny of my fellow colleagues, is a constant challenge, and I frequently let myself down. Still, I am determined to improve. The way I see it, I should try my utmost to do what the company asks of me. If that's not good enough, then as in any other profession I will be moved on. If however what the company is asking of its workers is too much, then it is the company that will suffer in the long term. I guess that the union guys are simply looking at the increasing challenges thrust upon the workers and coming to the conclusion that things need to change now before they get worse, as they see it, defending the rights of the workers. Personally I will deliver till I drop (though that is unlikely), because that is my job. I do not see it as my job to set what hours I should be working and how much mail I should be delivering. I admit that I have no interest in the long term viability of the company, I am just a postie and do what work is given to me, and I guess that is just how the company likes me. If I were a manager, then I would have different responsibilities and different decisions to make, and no doubt I would probably be struggling in that role as well and frequently be having difficult days. I guess that the responsibilities of the union member lie somewhere in-between those of a postie and those of a manager, because a union member takes an interest in both sides of the job: the management and the delivery of the mail. I am a simple soul, and though I may very well let myself down again on Monday when I go to work, I may take too long, or make mistakes, ultimately I will not let my customers down, because by the end of my day I will have delivered all my mail, while being honest enough to myself, my customers and my management as to whether I performed as well as I could have. I have a fantastic manager who was understanding when recently I needed time off to mourn a death in my close family, and recently when a dog overly-keen to receive its owner's mail nearly took my arm off my manager again gave me enough time off to recover. I believe that if we all work hard and all work together, and try to understand each other's position and that we all want what is best for the company, then a lot of hard work and teamwork will go a long way to improving our lot. Yes I see changes at the office, even in the short time that I have been working there. I see a reduction in hours at the office, I see creeping work loads, I see low morale (not at all helped by the current union/management stand-off), I see strained colleagues, I see and hear of a change in the sorts of mail that we are delivering, not necessarily a drop in the amounts because some days my back is breaking, but some days I am finished in half the time, I feel a worry amongst the experienced posties that the nature of the job is changing and that change is inevitable, but all-the-while my experience is one of enjoyment and satisfaction because we are all committed to getting on with it while having a great laugh, and we know that we will remain the only business in town that delivers every single letter to every single door, come rain or shine, because that's what makes us what we are. Those more outspoken than me in the office are not shy of raising these issues at open meetings at the start of the day, and our manager is not backwards when coming forwards about the challenges that he is facing to keep up with the changes happening all around. Not everyone appreciates the manager, nor his assistant, nor his deputy, nor the rest of his team, yet I believe that everyone instinctively knows that we are all collectively under pressure and that no-ones job is 100% safe, not in any walk of life these days. I wish that things at company hq were running smoother between the bosses and the unions, but I also wish I was built like Schwarzenegger and financed like Cowell, then my life would be somewhat easier. No bag-weight would ever deter me, and I could afford that jumbo sausage roll instead of its inferior relation at the bakers. Would I still get up early to deliver those unwanted leaflets and face those killer canines? Who knows. Even now the strife at company hq is making me question if I want to be involved with such a troubled organisation. If there is a protracted process of action and counter-action between management and union, then I will grow increasingly frustrated, as many of my colleagues, most union members unlike myself, already are with things as they are at present; and we are just at the beginning of maybe a winter of discontent. I would like to think that I could quickly find a resolution to the problems, but then I am neither brave nor bold enough to put myself to the test and join the fight. I don't wanna fight, I just wanna work (that sounds like some kind of slogan). I also know that I am no rocket-scientist. I couldn't see myself doing any other job. I'm a proud postie, one with 99% of all other posties I have had the pleasure to work along side (the other 1% take no pride in their work and are no fun to work with). We need the Royal Mail, and the company needs posties, and van drivers, mail sorters, office workers, cleaners, etc. We need each other. Together we are stronger and will last longer. Like I say, I'm a simple soul.

[Sci_Dog]

peejay14 Do you know how hard your post was to read!? Paragraphs mate! Anyways I think it was a lot of silly stuff and wish I hadn't read it!

[dvbuk55]

Really doesn't help though when we come on and post our REASONS and feel like we have to justify ourselves to say why we are choosing to work, and what do we get in return?
Let's see this "solidarity" and all for one everyone sticking together in royal mail, or is that just for the ones in the clique that is the CWU?

You feel you have to justify yourself? - the subject of this thread is "Why I will be crossing the picket line" - if you didn't want to justify your position, then why post in the first place? I think you are trying to justify yourself to yourself - most people couldn't care less what you do now - but they may do when the dust has settled and you have to return to work with the people who have shown solidarity with the union. I suppose any group of people united in a single cause could be called a clique but no one has to join and people are free to leave at any time.

It is strange the number of people who find their way to this forum when there is a struggle to confront

[Turpin]

Ok PEEJAY Well done simple.