Postal workers' fury at scandal of Burslem

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=22612" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Activists in the postal workers’ CWU union are angry after an Employment Tribunal ruled against four union reps from the Burslem delivery office in Stoke-on-Trent last week.

The reps were among 12 workers who were sacked or suspended in 2007.

Royal Mail accused the activists of “intimidation”—but workers say the bosses were doing the intimidating.

The tribunal was not asked to rule on the reps’ behaviour or whether the company had acted harshly by sacking them. It merely asked if Royal Mail had broken its own disciplinary procedures when dealing with the reps.

“This is an outrageous decision with serious implications for the whole trade union movement,” Lee Baron, the CWU’s Midlands regional secretary, told Socialist Worker.

“The only crime these people committed was to stand up for their union.

“Some have been sacked for things they are alleged to have said in union meetings. Frankly, that’s none of Royal Mail’s business.”

Profile

The Burslem case has a high profile within the CWU nationally. Many believe that if Royal Mail can drive the union out of such a well-organised office, they will move on to others.

Postal workers from across Britain joined a demonstration in Stoke in support of Burslem in January 2008. At the same time CWU members across North Staffordshire were voting on strike action to defend their colleagues.

The union agreed not to announce the ballot result after Royal Mail said that outstanding cases would be referred to a National Appeals Panel. But the panel declared in the bosses’ favour.

“We have to return to old fashioned tactics,” one rep told Socialist Worker. “As soon as one of our people is sacked or suspended, we need strikes—official if possible, unofficial if necessary.

“In the past, that’s the way we’ve saved my job. And there are hundreds of other reps who are still working at Royal Mail who would say the same.”

March to stop the closure of Stevenage mail centre, Saturday 30 October. Assemble 12.30pm, Stevenage mail centre, London Road, SG1 1AA

© Socialist Worker (unless otherwise stated). You may republish if you include an active link to the original.

[Lounge Lizard]

I've not seen this before, a current job vacancy that expects one to work at any of EIGHT Delivery Offices

Postman/Postwoman with Occasional Driving - Stoke On Trent
Contract TypeFixed Term Temporary Contract
EmployerRoyal Mail Letters
AddressLeek Road
STOKE ON TRENT
ST4 2AX
Job Description
Royal Mail has been in operation since 1625 and we are the most trusted mail delivery provider in the UK. Every working day we collect, process and deliver around 71 million items to over 28 million addresses.
We are going through our biggest modernisation programme in our history and have invested over 2 billion in modernising our business to ensure we provide a more reliable service whilst maintaining our low cost UK and international service.
To continue with our success, we need dedicated staff who are passionate about customer service, enjoy working as a team and have a flexible outlook.
We are now recruiting Delivery Postmen/ Delivery Postwomen who may be required to undertake occasional driving duties to work at Stoke, Biddulp, Burslem, Cheadle, Kidsgrove, Leek, Longton or Newcastle Delivery Offices.

[smok3y666]

That vacancy has been up quite a while and advertised a few times before over the last few months.

[Lounge Lizard]

That vacancy has been up quite a while and advertised a few times before over the last few months.

Maybe, but it expects one to work at any of EIGHT Delivery Offices, so is this just a way of not having to pay travelling expenses if you're sent to a neighbouring office for a while ?

[norbert]

http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=22612

Activists in the postal workers’ CWU union are angry after an Employment Tribunal ruled against four union reps from the Burslem delivery office in Stoke-on-Trent last week.

The reps were among 12 workers who were sacked or suspended in 2007.

Royal Mail accused the activists of “intimidation”—but workers say the bosses were doing the intimidating.

The tribunal was not asked to rule on the reps’ behaviour or whether the company had acted harshly by sacking them. It merely asked if Royal Mail had broken its own disciplinary procedures when dealing with the reps.

“This is an outrageous decision with serious implications for the whole trade union movement,” Lee Baron, the CWU’s Midlands regional secretary, told Socialist Worker.

“The only crime these people committed was to stand up for their union.

“Some have been sacked for things they are alleged to have said in union meetings. Frankly, that’s none of Royal Mail’s business.”

Profile

The Burslem case has a high profile within the CWU nationally. Many believe that if Royal Mail can drive the union out of such a well-organised office, they will move on to others.




© Socialist Worker (unless otherwise stated). You may republish if you include an active link to the original.

The fair and reasonable test of an Employer doesn't apply more ?? & IT's deal with matters in a very narrow way .

New Labour was under a lot of pressure from the likes of the C.B.I. to appear more business friendly & cut down the amount of tribunals costing business too much money in settlements & expenses - some of the cases were apparently weak . The right wing of New Labour like His Toniness & Nurse Ratched or Patronising Pat were all for it.

The concession given by the Postie's " friend " Alan Johnson was that ACAS would step into the breach & work their magic

So if a firm as institutionally dishonest & underhand as RM have made sure the i's are dotted & t's crossed , with the help of dodgy solicitors , their stitch up's will be upheld . It doesn't matter if it stinks to high heaven , like this one with the CWU 30 Page Statement of Dissent , highlighting more holes than a Swiss Cheese , the usual contradictions and more questions than answers - it ticks all the boxes :lfo :mfo :cfo http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ....sounds like a legal stitch up

http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Comments are " interesting " . http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... 33&start=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Key Witnesses Evidence flawed & inconsistent http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/ne ... ticle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[johno47]

It was a stitch up norbert, the unions Barrister hammered RM every day for 2 weeks and proved that they were sacked unfairly, but because RM followed the correct procedure them men lost their jobs, they would have had a fairer trial and had more justice if they had killed someone, no independant person who heard their stories would have found them guilty of anything, we are all gutted at Burslem, apart from a couple of people, but it highlights a more worrying aspect that we all should worry about, and that is RM can accuse anybody of anything and as long as they follow the correct procedure you havnt got a chance in hell of ever getting any justice or your job back, if you ask me this decision was taken by goverment at a very high level, after all they want to sell the business, the last thing they need is more people who are willing to stand up and fight for the rights of other people, i really do know now that the working person hasnt got any rights, big business rules, what a sham of a legal system the working person has.

[norbert]

I got the impression after the " Independent " Appeals Panel & the Professor who preferred to believe RM , it went even higher than RM's Senior / Exec Mgt who gave the orders too ...theres a few people that are terrified :mfo

[gb93]

What saddens me is this a massive issue that truly has a massive detrimental effect on each and EVERY one of us, yet this thread has had little interest or outrage shown.
Better everybody concerns themselves with the really important stuff and true evils.
Let's see Is mail going down, how many d2d, lazy Ft, lazy Pt, RM footwear, taking vans home & jellybabies.
These guys at Burslem have been through hell for years and lost their jobs for having the balls & conviction to stand up for themselves and their colleagues.
This is the tip of the iceberg and the dam has well and truly burst with this ruling giving RM carte blanche to dismiss at will.
I hope the guys who lost the case can start to find closure and begin to move on in some way for the sake of their sanity and wellbeing.
Good luck guys for the future, the way you have been treat is shamefull but you have no shame and deserve a bright and happy future.

[norbert]

You have to look at who wants to buy RM , the likes of Private Equity Vultures which run up debt to buy companies & they'll be very hostile to the CWU as they " get in the way " , they'll tighten up and discipline on trivialities to create a culture of fear .... a bigger picture slightly more important than cr** cheap shoes , Farmfoods Leaflets & otherwise unemployable old soldiers tainted beyond redemption , that should have been put out to grass years ago ....unfortunately some people just don't get it & never will & that's their problem alone .

If anyone here was made redundant , paid off , sacked by fair or more usually foul means & applied to work for one of those parcel carriers , you wouldn't get a job as they've a paranoid anxiety about unions & the CWU . Many are known as slave drivers , firms like Hermes paying staff on piece work , 45p per delivery , 50p per collection etc , they're undercutting RM now with a £2.75 up to 1kg till 25/10/10 offer , they haven't got the infrastructure & economy of scale like RM , it's a cut throat True Blue Business - H&S would go out of the window - just bed and work and My God - We'll make you grateful for it - turning the clock back 80 - 100 + years or more .

There's the stupid b***ers tapping away on Keyboards to poxy Tory local ass wipes like The Stoke Sentinel & The Express & The Daily Sieg Heil , that think this is all brilliant , then they start squawking when they find out it's not what it's cracked up to be . Some people never learn , The Utilities , Railways are a case in point .

Ebayers http://community.ebay.co.uk/topic/Selle ... 6?start=16" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; There will be some Tory Ebayers that will charge buyers RM / Parcelfarce P&P rates but use Hermes and think the money saved will pay for Pay Pal & eBays listing fees and all the incidentals , cardboard , bubble wrap etc BUT then they'll have irate customers complaining & leaving bad feedback which is a headache & time consuming to deal with .

http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communit ... 9&start=15" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.complaintsboard.com/complain ... 22957.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/sho ... ?t=2517683" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.ciao.co.uk/Hermes_Parcel_del ... ew_5882187" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[borders]

top posts from Norbert , gb93 and johno.
this has gone under the radar as you would expect, you wont hear about this on the radio , TV or in the main papers.
Honest men and women trying to protect their reasonable terms and conditions. what a sham ....

[brothermagrew]

Is there no chance of an appeal being launched through the EAT.

[norbert]

ironically the EAT is a tactic RM use ...if they think they've any grounds on case law , legalities etc ; if they lose a Tribunal ; they'll try and get it overturned in the EAT - RM will happily throw money at it - they can play trench warfare with the CWU they can afford it ....whether the Union can is debatable .

Seen this happen with another Union ....where things were badly handled by both a Marxist influenced Union Branch & p*** poor macho local management ....that case was also used as a precedent - " We will impose , if anyone wants to make an issue of it , you know what happened to those four from .........."

With Burslem it doesn't need the comrades to stir it up .....RM doesn't need any help in turning a storm in a teacup into abject disaster ! .