Postal workers go into battle

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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Author:
Darren Bedford
On 23 May the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) announced that 79% of voting postal workers in London had backed strike action against the closure of three London mail centres.

The turnout was around 54%, and over 3,000 London postal workers could now strike in June as they attempt to save Nine Elms, Rathbone Place and the Twelvetrees Crescent centre in Bow. Other major London mail centres not threatened with closure, such as the giant Mount Pleasant site in Islington, also face significant cuts. Mount Pleasant could potentially be reduced to 57% of its current size. Royal Mail bosses estimate that the cutbacks will involve nearly 600 job losses.

Last week’s CWU conference voted unanimously to mobilise national support for the London dispute, including by refusing to handle any London mail diverted to centres outside the capital.

The CWU’s London divisional rep Martin Walsh said: “London postal workers have sent a clear message to Royal Mail in this ballot that they will not be bullied or intimidated by the company. Royal Mail’s closure plans are a clear threat of compulsory redundancy and this is completely unacceptable. In their race to push services to the bottom, Royal Mail will eventually provoke a reaction wider than London.”

This will be the third piece of major industrial action by postal workers in the last four years. Previous disputes, both London-wide and national, have been undermined by a failure on the part of the union leadership to focus action around winning specific, targeted demands, preferring catch-all but undefined opposition to management’s general intentions and concretely only demanding further negotiations. Some rank-and-file networking was done in the 2007 and 2009 disputes, particularly around the mobilisations to oppose the shoddy deals the CWU leadership eventually sold to its members. Those networks must be reactivated and rebuilt to make sure that rank-and-file postal workers, in London and beyond, have their hands on the steering wheel of this dispute.

Like the battles in 2007 and 2009, this fight is one to save the post as a public service. Savage cuts at three of the capital’s most important mail centres are part of a wider project to financially streamline and, ultimately, to privatise the post service.

By linking up with other workers fighting to stop privatisation and job losses, London postal workers can turn their jobs dispute into a class battle for public ownership.

[Pat Ostman]

Good Luck brothers

[slave]

In their race to push services to the bottom, Royal Mail will eventually provoke a reaction wider than London.”

Erm, no. A number of MCs have already closed without any big noise, significant DOs have implemented a failing delivery system without any major fight..
If people think RM can continue to operate as they have done in the past they are obviously on a different planet (f**k me, I'm sounding like a manager, not good) as much as I hate the changes I know the company has to change and cut staff, look at BT, Gas, Water, Electric, blah, etc -same story, we knew it would happen to us eventually, privatisation has been a shadow hanging over the company for many many years, the CWU claims to have fought it but hasn't really, more a case of delaying the inevitable.. (oh and we have the Con party in power and everyone knows their track record)

I do however disagree with compulsary redundancy and applaud any efforts to stop that happening.

I also disagree with implementing stupid unworkable delivery methods.

I will fight, but only if the CWU change and ultimately grow a pair.

[fishtank]

the company has to change and cut staff,look at BT, Gas, Water, Electric, blah, etc -same story

Yes.
Let's look at them.
Sky high prices...rock bottom levels of service...huge profits disappearing into hedge fund managers pockets.
Are you sure the company should go in that direction?

[slave]

I was merely suggesting that most other once public industries have gone that way and it really only was a matter of time before we were (it's been mentioned numerous times in the past)..

Crap service (late deliveries, high prices etc), crap pay and conditions for staff - have a look at a significant portion of big businesses in this country and that is what you'll find, such is the modern working world.. (it's all about top brass pay and bonuses, keeping share holders sweet and the like)

And that doesn't mean I agree with it, believe me I'd much rather see a return to the old days when RM was a public company where service came first not cost cutting and management bonuses, but those days are long gone as they are in most companies. As for this company and change, you can bury your head in the sand and try to fight against it but we as a union are weak (less members, out of touch leaders) and have not got the strength or public backing for any serious action these days. Despite the public constantly whinging about later deliveries and s**t service they also whinge when we go out on strike to try and protect the what is left of the service, gormless clueless f***ers that they are!!

And yes, I hate the way this country has become a bunch of wishy washy yes-men willing to work their arses into the ground for a crappy pay packet and a crappy or even no contract or worse as agency staff, rather than standing up and fighting for something better and deserving of their input into business and industry. We need a massive change of attitudes in this country for unions to rise again, can't see that being in my lifetime though.