'I wouldn't want to cross that picket line': Under cover wit

[mucker]

He was a militant Royal Mail old-timer and he knew perfectly well how to scare the new recruits.

He was a militant Royal Mail old-timer and he knew perfectly well how to scare the new recruits.

Leaning across the canteen table, he told his union friends what might happen to the 'strike breakers', in a voice designed to be heard by all.

'It's going to be fun tomorrow. I wouldn't want to be crossing that picket line or trying to drive past it. You don't know what could happen to your car.'
Ryan Kisiel

Undercover: Reporter Ryan Kisiel discovered an intimidating atmosphere at the sorting depot in Severn Beach near Bristol

This was my introduction to my first day working undercover as a temporary recruit to the Royal Mail - joining as a 'scab' (or strike breaker) to keep the postal service operating during the industrial action.

I was to witness a series of unpleasant confrontations between union members and temporary workers, slipshod security vetting procedures which meant a self-confessed criminal got a job, and sacks of post left lying in warehouses.

Last weekend, I applied to become one of the 30,000 workers being hired to help clear the backlog of post. Few qualifications were required, other than being able-bodied and eligible to work in the UK.

I applied for a position in Bristol, one of the cities most affected by union militancy where there have been four one-day unofficial wildcat strikes in the last six weeks.

After emailing my CV to the recruitment agent Reed, I was phoned 15 minutes later and asked when I was available. All I needed was a passport, utility bill with my home address and two passport photos.

The job paid £5.80 an hour - the national minimum wage - and I was given the choice of two shifts: 6am to 2pm or 10am to 6pm.

The next day I attended a 45-minute group interview at the agency's office. I was given a simple test to see if I could match envelope addresses to the Royal Mail's area codes. Laughably, there was no check for accuracy.

I signed the Official Secrets Act - the Royal Mail is a Government agency - and completed a police security form designed to ensure applicants had no criminal record.

Next, security clearance badges with photo identification were given out - even though criminal record checks had not yet been processed.

One was given to someone who had admitted that he had once been convicted for a 'petty crime'. The interviewer simply said: 'I don't think that will be a problem.'

A recruit asked if there would be any danger crossing picket lines. He was told: 'I don't think there will be any trouble. They'll just stand outside with a bonfire and it will be quite jovial, like a barbecue.'

On Wednesday I started work at the massive Royal Mail warehouse at Severn Beach, outside Bristol. As I walked on to the warehouse floor, a supervisor pointed to a pile of postbags on container lorries. We had to move these to smaller delivery vans using fork-lift trucks.

The Royal Mail staff were supposed to drive the fork-lifts as close as possible to the container lorries to help us. But they made life difficult for us temporary workers who were left to drag the heavy sacks while they refused to help.

It was incredibly hard dragging bags weighing up to 70lb each.

I tried to talk to one of the Royal Mail staff who was standing by his fork-lift truck. He ignored me.

At lunch, the atmosphere in the cafeteria was intimidating. The Royal Mail staff (in orange uniforms) sat in one area, and the temporary workers (in yellow) huddled together in a corner. All Royal Mail staff refused to speak to us.

Among our group was a 23-year-old from Bristol who told me that she had an English degree but has been unable to find other work.

She had lost a stone since joining the Royal Mail three months ago, because the work was so physical.
Ryan Kisiel

Striker breaker: As a temporary worker, Ryan Kisiel endured taunts of 'scab'

Back in the warehouse, a supervisor asked me to use a manual forklift trolley to carry metal containers. When I said I had never used one, he replied: 'You'll learn.'

At 5.50pm, a group of Polish temporary workers started leaving. They said they always went early because the bosses never noticed.

The next day the strike had started and we had to cross the picket line. A crowd of post workers waited outside the gates, shouting as people approached.

As I neared the entrance, four protesters approached my car and chanted: 'Scab, scab, scab!'

Once inside, there were only 30 temporary workers to tackle the day's sorting of post. Senior managers were on duty to try to help.

Even though it was only my second day, I had to show the managers how to use the simple area code system. To our surprise, the managers disappeared after an hour.

What seemed most absurd was that sorting the post was not mechanised and that everything was still done by hand.

It was such mind-numbing work that a Pole, who was employed short-term, began a game to see who could throw their sack the furthest into the metal container - despite the fact that many of the packages were marked 'fragile'.

At around 5.45pm, the supervisor said we could go home early. Asked how long the eventual backlog from the strike will take to clear, he said: 'Two weeks.'

Given the huge piles of undelivered post, this seems wildly overoptimistic.

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[kwf166]

So one of the 30,000 temporary workers is an undercover reporter, well done royal mail, so much for your security checks, its seems to me they are letting anyone in, its a pity this reporter is targetting the work force, why dooesn't try the currupt management, we have to put up with

I love this bit from the reporter

I signed the Official Secrets Act - the Royal Mail is a Government agency - and completed a police security form designed to ensure applicants had no criminal record.

surely he broken that law

[mucker]

The job paid £5.80 an hour - the national minimum wage - and I was given the choice of two shifts: 6am to 2pm or 10am to 6pm.

The next day I attended a 45-minute group interview at the agency's office. I was given a simple test to see if I could match envelope addresses to the Royal Mail's area codes. Laughably, there was no check for accuracy.

I signed the Official Secrets Act - the Royal Mail is a Government agency - and completed a police security form designed to ensure applicants had no criminal record.

Next, security clearance badges with photo identification were given out - even though criminal record checks had not yet been processed.

One was given to someone who had admitted that he had once been convicted for a 'petty crime'. The interviewer simply said: 'I don't think that will be a problem.'

Even though it was only my second day, I had to show the managers how to use the simple area code system. To our surprise, the managers disappeared after an hour.

It was such mind-numbing work that a Pole, who was employed short-term, began a game to see who could throw their sack the furthest into the metal container - despite the fact that many of the packages were marked 'fragile'.

[shadow]

Knowingly employing criminals to handle sensitive mail, I'm sure the public will like the sound of that. RM must be desperate.

[Lincox]

Use of non motorised fork lift trucks without any training. What happened to health and safety

[mucker]

Use of non motorised fork lift trucks without any training. What happened to health and safety

health and safety when it suits royal fail :cfo :mfo

[IWW Fellow Worker]

"To our surprise, the managers disappeared after an hour."

But none of us would have been surprised!

[TrueBlueTerrier]

I applied for a position in Bristol, one of the cities most affected by union militancy where there have been four one-day unofficial wildcat strikes in the last six weeks.

Yellow because his facts are wrong - they were not wildcat unofficial they were organised official

The Royal Mail staff (in orange uniforms)

Was he temping for RM or TNT

Even though it was only my second day, I had to show the managers how to use the simple area code system.

Should we be surprised: Yes - Are we No.

What seemed most absurd was that sorting the post was not mechanised and that everything was still done by hand.

Hes come face to face with RMs version of Modernisation then.

[Stormproof]

Has there been wildcat strikes? I keep hearing this, even on our local radio station they mentioned our area having wildcat strikes but we had a ballot and have only had official strikes.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Has there been wildcat strikes? I keep hearing this, even on our local radio station they mentioned our area having wildcat strikes but we had a ballot and have only had official strikes.

There was a couple in Scotland when drivers where suspended for refusing to cross picket lines, and one in North West England but have not heard of any more.

[stokes11eg]

Now--send other Undercover workers to work for months underthe same conditions we have to----then they will see why we are striking--hey ho--to all journalists everywhere--if your bosses got temps in to do your work when you striking ti save your jobs--how would you feel. So far-there has been no trouble on the picket lines--well done to everybody--i think the local rags were hoping for some punch ups t0 show us in a bad light.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

BTW not sure this journalist understand undercover

How many temps get themselves photographed at the gates of where they are working Bet the driver of the wagon wondered what was going on and said something to someone.

[NWpostie]

At least he is exposing the incompetence of RM management, as to the staff not speaking to temps, its a hard one for me too, if I was in that situation, as I am fairly easy going type of chap, to be friendly with temps would compromise my ability to conduct this strike effectively, there is a lot at stake.


Official secrets Acts as far as I am aware is covers confidential information and security procedures, including knowledge of customers business, when a customer is away on holiday and how long for, all these information is covered by the OSC, anything else that is in the public domain is not covered including IMO public interest disclosures, which include exposing incompetent and risky employment procedures as mentioned in the Daily Mail report which I have in front of me here.