The truth behind the last 48 hours

[The truth!]

Its time for some of you to realise what has happened and I will be quite open.

Last Sunday the Union met with Royal Mail and Roger Poole and ACAS and agreed a program for the week. Which intialy had an aim to reach an agreement on Monday but with a dead line of reaching an agreement on Thursday.

There was still a number of outstanding issues on Monday which I will expand on later.

There was an CWU officers meeting on Wednesday to flush out all the outstanding issues. The draft agreement which is as thick as war and peace was being drafted. There were two copies Royal Mail`s draft and our draft.

On Thursday morning both parties met , and the aim was to reach an agreement and then announce that to the PEC, the divisional reps and regional secretaries at a meeting at the TUC on Thursday afternoon. ( Before any one jumps in, of course that agreement would be subject to the PEC and Members votes )

However the CWU and Royal Mail could not reach agreement, Royal Mail were sulking . At once stage Mark Higson had refused to attend the meeting to address the senior reps of the UNION. Dave Ward turned up and was just preparing to tell everyone that Royal Mail had refused to attend when Higson , Roger Poole and other senior members of Royal Mail walked into the room.

Mark Higson addressed the meeting and stated that they wanted to create a new relationship with the UNION as if they dont the company will simply drift down the road to ruin. They gave the reps Royal Mails full plans for the next 5 years including their anticpated revnue and outgoing and they answered questions. Roger Poole chaired the meeting and it went on past the scheduled time. All parties including Higson, Poole and Ward said that even if they dont get any sleep tonight they intended to get an agreement.

Dave Ward made the last contribution of the meeting , in which he stated that the union intended to sqeueeze every last thing out of Royal Mail as our members expected nothing less. You could see Higson was not best pleased.

After this meeting at the TUC the talks resumed in an hotel around the corner all of Royal Mail`s senior board members were booking into the hotel even those who were not in the talks in the belief that the deal would be done. Royal Mail were still angry over the briefing and the talk were tense and very lively. Anyone who knows Dave will know he does not mince words as Crozier found out to his cost previously.

The two outstanding major issues were what triggers the lumps sums, Royal Mail wanted it based on the success of the revision the CWU wanted it on the introdcution.

The other major issue was that the NEW MTSF agreement , Royal Mail only want the terms for 3 years when there plan is for 5 years. Of course the Union is insisting that its 5 years.

Now there are still some drafting issues but they are the major sticking points.

Royal Mail came in and stated on the lump sum they had given the union their final offer. The Union rejected this offer and left for the night.

Now what happened yesterday was like a tidal wave.

In London Royal Mail had decided to put out a briefing on a new masurement system call Delivery Indoor Productivity which compeletly cut across the delivery part of the National Agreement. Our National officers were outraged as was Roger Poole.

In fact Dave Ward sent an email which I will quote below to Dale Haddon Royal Mail`s lead negotator.

Dale

Please see the attached document. It completely misreprsents the 2007 flexibility agreement. It Completely misrepresents the National Agreement on Indivudal perfromance standards. It completely undermines the agreement that Bob ( Bob Gibson ) has reached on performance standards. I assume you are aware of this.

In response the union will be making it clear Royal Mail are imposing change and the talk have broken down. The PEC will now meet to consider what other action we need to take.

Now Royal Mail went into a mass panic intially everyone denying it was from the centre and then blaming other managers. In the end Royal Mail came back and said that the Delivery productivity tool WTLL will not be rolled out and a conference call was held by Royal Mail to all DOMS and DSMs in London that the document was withdrawn and no use of that tool will be proposed.

Royal Mail then invited the CWU to a meeting this Sunday as their final offer might not have been their final offer.

Now that is the truth about the last 48 hours. No spin involved.

Now this is the thought I leave you with this.

Royal Mail need an agreement to successfully introdcue their whole plan. (its not the CWU plan ) Royal Mail know they can introduce their plan without agreement but will face industrial relation problems in some areas which may mean they dont realise the financial savings.

The CWU need an agreement to safe guard against the impact of Royal Mail`s plan as walk sequencing , the work plan change , the closure of mail centres , RDCs and later Saturdays will be introduced with or without an agreement.

Most senior reps know that but the fact is as the last 48 hours should prove the CWU are not in the market for a bad deal or a sell out. However every gain we make mean that Royal Mail`s finacial plan changes and thats not just on the benefits but things like MTSF etc.

[donut]

very interesting....thanks for the candid update. Dingo ..who ?

[el_cartero]

Thanks .....

Oh well good luck sir and thanks for the truth.

Good luck on sunday.

El

[monkey76]

Its time for some of you to realise what has happened and I will be quite open..................

Thanks alot for that info.

[packmule]

At last , wasn't painful was it.

[delboy]

Thankyou for the update, I think our subs should go to you this weeK..
At last someone who seem to know what is happening..

[snoopywonderdog]

At Last some news I can believe, Many Thanks.

[Wessex]

I sincerely hope that the Senior Union negotiators are getting enough sleep and if they are not that the RM negotiators are also suffering the exact amount of sleep deprivation.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Tanks for the update "The Truth" it is greatly appreciated at least by me.

Perhaps the only thing that is niggling me is that there was mention of "The CWU needs an agreement" and "RM needs an agreement", I just hope ultimately that what the CWU Needs matches what the members also need because sometimes the Union as a body needs different things to what individual members need.

Of course I fully trust the the CWU will always defer to members interests first if there is ever a possibility of a conflict of interests.

[stokes11eg]

Still mention of R/M going ahead with the changes regardless of an agreement or not.

[eian687]

about time someone had the balls to let us know how things are going
thanx

[midvillain]

nice one. now why not get that sent to all the offices and photocopied for all the members to read on monday?

[ronpetetrevchris]

to you sir,

to the CWU

[dvbuk55]

Still mention of R/M going ahead with the changes regardless of an agreement or not.

That was ever the case stokesy, in the same way they have introduced change over the last two years. In some areas it will be introduced and the staff will accept the changes and try to make it work. It isn't the best way to go about things but they would have to press ahead because they would slavishly follow the savings plan even if it made no sense and no savings. They really need a deal or they will suffer the consequence of industrial unrest again but even without it they will steam on.

Personally I think that Royal Mail management are out of control, out of ideas and have set a path totally devoid of any concept of reality.

[AnotherLimey]

Thanks