Union bosses use our cash for their homes

[MinisterofCucumber]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/u ... 888967.ece" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The union bosses leading the postal strike have used more than £1m of their members’ money to buy homes with heavily subsidised mortgages.

Dave Ward, the Communication Workers Union’s (CWU) chief negotiator in the dispute, is one of seven union executives who are paying as little as 0.375% on their mortgages. They have been guaranteed rates at three-quarters of the prevailing Bank of England base rate, currently 0.5%.

Billy Hayes, general secretary of the CWU, borrowed the entire value of his property from the union on a different type of deal, personally signed off by Alan Johnson, its former leader and now the home secretary.

The revelation, which comes as the union prepares to follow up two days of strike chaos with three days of rolling action later this week, is likely to anger postmen and Royal Mail customers.


The long-running dispute has already resulted in a backlog of more than 30m undelivered letters, a figure that is likely to rise dramatically after union action expected on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The Sunday Times has established that Ward was lent £100,000 of union funds to buy a house in Chessington, Surrey, in late 2005.

He later acted as the trustee of a similar loan that allowed Tony Kearns, another member of the CWU’s high command, to borrow £268,000 from the union to buy a property in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey.

The CWU said officials were lent union money so they could afford to relocate to work in the union’s headquarters in London, where property prices are higher.

However, Kevin Slocombe, a senior CWU official, was lent more than £187,000 to buy a property in Bristol in July last year. Tony Rupa, the union’s head of legal services, borrowed £130,000 of union money for a house in Crawley, West Sussex.

According to Land Registry documents, almost all of the mortgages levy interest at three-quarters of the Bank’s base rate. This means most of the CWU’s leaders may be paying 0.375% on their mortgages. According to Moneyfacts, the price-comparison website, the typical rate on a two-year fixed mortgage is currently 5.08%.

Ray Boulger, technical director of Charcol, the mortgage broker, said: “These days, it is near-unique for an employer to lend an employee money to buy a home.”

This newspaper found evidence of eight serving CWU officials with union mortgages, and two former officials who had enjoyed the perk in the past. Three of the properties are in Surrey, with two in Wimbledon, west London.

Johnson, who served as the CWU’s general secretary until becoming an MP in 1997, had a union mortgage on his home in Norwood, south London.

When he became a junior minister at the Department of Trade and Industry in 1999, he transferred his mortgage to another lender to avoid any perception of a conflict of interest.

In 1995 Johnson had approved a £77,000 home loan for Hayes, the current general secretary, so he could buy a £76,000 property in Mitcham, Surrey.

Hayes, whose remuneration last year added up to £97,000, is paying more than his colleagues, with an interest rate of 5%. The home secretary’s name can still be seen on the mortgage document.

Another key player in the current dispute, Andy Furey, the union’s assistant secretary and national officer for post offices, borrowed £200,000 to buy a house in Raynes Park, south London.

A CWU source said that details of the mortgages were published in a document available to the union’s members. “Our senior people are only elected for a fixed term and that can make it difficult to get a mortgage,” the source said.

The CWU’s 250,000 members last year paid a total of £27.4m in subscriptions.

A senior source at the Trades Union Congress said he had never heard of a union lending members’ funds to senior staff. “This should not be happening,” he said.

“Many of our members are on low incomes. They give us their money to fight their corner — not buy nice houses.”

[guvenor]

now we know one of the reasons they caved into rm sorry i meant hm gvmt ie labour
who in turn have mps up in court for fraud
think its time all funding to political parties was stopped and independant investigation should be made by tuc
regarding cwu leaders perks surely its immoral and corrupt to be subsidised by the very people ou go out on strike against
jobs for the boys ?
the whole thing stinks why are we not as strong as spanish , french or italians

[Night Tonic]

And what short memories. A year ago the papers blasted HQ top brass over their salaries etc and how quick those on here were to defend them. Fickle

[stokes11eg]

: MMMMMMMMMMMM If this is true,shame on them.wonder if they would lend me a few thousand, and minmul rates?

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Old story and comments at the time can be seen at http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... %A3268,000" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[brothermagrew]

And yet in a recent union communication LTB321/10 Election of National Delegates & National Representative Positions - 2010 is contained the following sentence:

The review has taken into account the necessity for the CWU to reduce its financial expenditure at every available opportunity and in accordance with this principle the delegation and committee sizes have been revised.

Smacks of hypocrisy or double standards.

[steve2zaf]

corrupt , dishonest comes to mind

[capricorn]

How have I missed this CWU offer ?

Where do I sign-up, sure beats the 7% I am paying now. I could even pay off my mortgage before I reach 65.

[Martin Walsh]

Have you tried to get a mortage recently with only a 5 year work contract ? Because that is all the officers have . No one is going to give a mortage to anyone on those terms.

[MinisterofCucumber]

Don't take the piss, how do self employed people get mortgages?

At the very least, RM would confirm that your original duty is still available to you when you get kicked off the gravy train.

[Martin Walsh]

Don't take the piss, how do self employed people get mortgages?

At the very least, RM would confirm that your original duty is still available to you when you get kicked off the gravy train.

What duty they have to resigned from Royal Mail to then become an officerof the Union. There is no duty. Self employed people well now the bubble has burst find it very hard to get mortages now.

[DGP1]

Don't take the piss, how do self employed people get mortgages?

At the very least, RM would confirm that your original duty is still available to you when you get kicked off the gravy train.

What duty they have to resigned from Royal Mail to then become an officerof the Union. There is no duty. Self employed people well now the bubble has burst find it very hard to get mortages now.

No offence dingo but mortgages are easy to get (even now) for people in fixed term contracts, otherwise all those people on temporary contracts wouldn't ever be able to get one.

[Tman]

No offence dingo but mortgages are easy to get (even now) for people in fixed term contracts, otherwise all those people on temporary contracts wouldn't ever be able to get one.

Must be one of those "stupid" posts........
{Wonder where he's been hiding for the last 18 months?}

[DGP1]

No offence dingo but mortgages are easy to get (even now) for people in fixed term contracts, otherwise all those people on temporary contracts wouldn't ever be able to get one.

Must be one of those "stupid" posts........
{Wonder where he's been hiding for the last 18 months?}

Care to explain??