Why is CWU supporting workfare??!!

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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There was a protest outside CWU headquarters yesterday over the union signing an agreement with Royal Mail to allow workfare schemes. Unemployed people being forced to work for their benefits. When I first heard about this I really honestly believed there had been a mistake. Surely not a union could be involved this? Workfare is against the principles of the labour movement. Workfare pushes down pay and conditions, it attacks ALL workers, it is just about the unemployed. The logic of this practice (obviously CWU bureaucracy don’t see it) implemented will impact on paid postal workers as Royal Mail will be asking itself, “Why employ people with a wage when we can do it for free”… CWU has signed up to a Frankenstein monster, it puts postal workers’ jobs in jeopardy while workfare is an oppressive practice, mandatory schemes where the unemployed face sanctions if they don’t sign up to receive their meagre amounts of benefits! It will undoubtedly create a two-tier workforce.

As stated on the leaflet being handed out yesterday:

There will be a new group of unpaid workers who will have to cross the picket line if there is a strike – or face destitution if their benefits are stopped.

There are temp workers working for Royal Mail who desperately want permanent contracts but with workfare …. again, why would Royal Mail give out permanent contracts when they can get labour for free?! Unpaid non-unionised workers who will do the jobs no one else wants to do. This isn’t about experience, developing skills and knowledge or increasing chances of getting work but creating an army of unpaid workers.

There has been an motion put to CWU conference (will run from Sunday 22 – Thursday 26 April at the Bournemouth International Centre Bournemouth). Let’s hope the motion will be heard and not accidentally on purpose knocked off the agenda. Hopefully there will be a protest outside conference.

CWU leadership should be ashamed. Across the road from the CWU headquarters I saw a closed Job Centre, shame really, as Billy Hayes and Dave Ward et al should shunted down there finding themselves unemployed. Hey don’t worry, as there are mandatory work schemes which will, apparently, help you get back into work and Royal Mail are looking for unpaid labour. How about it….chaps?!

[DirtyHarry]

The CWU is about as much use, as a chocolate fireguard.
I have been a union man all my working life, as was my father, but I cannot pay money into the CWU coffers anymore.
2.30pm finish on a Saturday, and all because the CWU couldn't be arsed to fight management's spiteful, and utterly unnecessary objective, to make Saturday as much of a drudge for postal workers unlucky enough to work in deliveries, as any other day during our terminably long week.
If they couldn't protect us on that, then frankly, they are not much of a union at all.

Deal of the century.

[hubbahubba]

Are GREGGS signed up to workfare?

[slave]

Why would they, indeed.. Why would they pay excessive salaries to the top brass, why would they encourage us to sign up for the shittest deal ever, why would they support liebour, why would they well, haven't got time to go on, but why would they - because they have lost the plot or have hidden agendas, Billy-boy on his jolly outings giving speeches, ex top-brass getting step up into politics.. So many whys so many answers, but who are we to complain...

[labbloke]

A great story indeed, but why let the truth spoil it.

The CWU negotiated that the 80 people that were taken on were to be paid Anguard raates for the experience.

[randompostman]

Sadly the only truth the CWU leadership have told about this whole sorry episode is that unemployed workers will be paid less than the going rate for the work that our members do. What they have done if you take their word is that they have made sure safeguards are in place so that unemployed workers will suffer no sanctions but only gain valuable work experience that will help these workers find jobs within RMG they also go on and say that their work experience scheme is entirely voluntary. This is simply not true and they have not even spoken to the department of work and pensions and in fact have not spoken to anybody other than Royal Mail and as we all know to our cost what they say is not necessarily the whole truth so here are some facts about the RM / CWU scheme.
Fact 1 these unemployed workers are chosen by the DWP so how is that voluntary? It is not.
Fact 2 if these people turn down the opportunity to learn how to post letters through a letterbox in a delivery office or cut and tip in an Mail centre they can and will be referred for a mandatory work placement where all the benefit sanctions are very much still in place! So how is this scheme free from sanctions? It is not.
Fact 3 If for whatever reason these people wish to leave in the first week they can and will be referred for a mandatory work placement where all the benefit sanctions are very much still in place! So how is this scheme free from sanctions again?
Fact 4 the CWU leadership says that these placements will not affect the earnings of CWU members. So what they are saying is even though our members were doing the work and getting paid before these placements when have RM have cheap labour doing this work our members will still get paid for it! I don’t think so.
Fact 5 the CWU leadership also claim that there will be real jobs offered for the successful conclusion of this scheme. Where are these jobs coming from when we have thousands of temporary contract workers waiting for a proper job and RMG continue to cut thousands of jobs with the help of the CWU leadership. Fact 6 by working in partnership with the ConDem “Government” yet again, the CWU have given a very thin veneer of respectability to a grubby slave labour scheme that more unscrupulous employers are latching on to and using to increase their profits at the expense of real jobs done by contracted workers. You can be sure that "Government" will use the CWU leaderships collusion to proclaim that these schemes are all decent and even Trade Unions are on board.
Fact 7 These work experience schemes are still classed as forced labour by the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB)
Fact 8 Some CWU members will be satisfied with the CWU leadership`s lie`s and half-truths that have been told to our membership about this issue but most are or will be horrified when they find out the whole truth.

[randompostman]

Quote "There will be a new group of unpaid workers who will have to cross the picket line if there is a strike – or face destitution if their benefits are stopped."

The leaflet does say this but the author seems to have missed the point of the leaflet overall as it was not just about the CWUs scheme but workfare in general. I have reproduced the leaflet below minus the pictures so that it can be judged as a whole.

Workfare – forced unpaid work – is wrong.
So why is the Communication Workers Union supporting it?

In January, Dave Ward of the CWU announced that he had signed an agreement with the Royal Mail to allow DWP Work Experience, a forced unpaid work scheme. People who need welfare were to be forced to work without wage on threat of welfare sanctions at no cost to the Royal Mail. The agreement was to see the scheme rolled out with ten 30 hour a week workfare placements at a time in each region.

Since then, workfare has hit the headlines and public outrage at forced unpaid work has led many high street brands to disassociate themselves from workfare. Under widespread pressure from Royal Mail workers and claimants, the CWU and Royal Mail have amended their position.

But people on the revised work experience scheme still face the threat of welfare sanctions from the DWP. If they do not take part, they are likely to be sent on a number of other compulsory schemes. There will still be a new group of unpaid workers who will have to cross the picket line if there is a strike – or face destitution if their benefits are stopped.
Workfare replaces paid staff with unpaid, non-unionised workers
“The basic starting wage for that level is around £17,000 for the work she was doing yet all she was getting was JSA and the fares for her lengthy bus journeys, while people doing identical work were
getting a salary, paid leave and pension contributions. We were
horrified. ” (Employee of Newham Council)

Workfare creates a two-tier workforce
“The first day was horrible. They sent me in the chill room to work
with no fleece or gloves. I noticed the other staff not doing any
hard jobs, making me do hard lifting. They were being paid and
not doing as hard work as me.”
(Person on workfare at Bookers Wholesale)

• Workfare does not increase peoples' chances of finding work.
• People face destitution if they are 'sanctioned' for not taking part.
• Workfare erodes everybody's pay, working rights and working conditions.
• The end of the idea that people have a right to welfare in our society.

Our message to CWU members and workers
The CWU leadership keeps insisting and repeating their agreement with Royal Mail for the RM Work Experience is guaranteed voluntary. Sadly they continue to miss the point.

Unless said leadership have a guarantee from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) that people leaving the RM/CWU scheme will not be penalised by the DWP, the scheme is not voluntary and sanction-free, as claimed.

Both postal workers and Boycott Workfare would be very happy to see such an agreement. It should be a simple matter for the CWU leadership to circulate it to members, This they have still failed to do so, in spite of many requests.

We can only assume no such guarantee exists.
And our fight against this workfare scheme continues.


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[justdeno]

I have always said long term unemployed or people who have never worked(cos it's not worth it), are getting a wage slip, but they should not work for any company, as to undermine staff. They should do charity work, in a shop, at a animal santuary, local historical place, litter picking to help the community etc. The CWU have got it sooo wrong, they are supposed to be labour and help safeguard their members I am disgusted.I suppose my job will be taken by one of these people, then I will be having to work for sweet FA for another co. This will not gain anything in the long run.Shame on the CWU.

[DirtyHarry]

The CWU is an absolute disgrace.
No union worthy of the name, would ever associate itself with this blatant example of exploitation.
Workfare, what next? Slavery, only a short hop, skip, and a jump away, that's what's next.

[fishtank]

My question is simple.
If we take a leap of faith and accept that everything HQ is saying is true this will cost Royal Mail the wages(granted at Angard rates) of 80 and the induction time,HR,the security checks,the mentor/coaching time and by CWU accounts they wont even be doing our work.
To good to be true?
Of course it is.
What's in it for Royal Mail?
And don't say it's a sense of conscience because they really want to help the young unemployed in their time of need or i may throw up.
In my opinion this is a softening up exercise,perhaps even a closed doors deal between Mr Brydon and his friends in government....
80 this time....800 in June....by Christmas you won't need Angard,we'll supply your 18,000 "casuals".
You support us and perhaps you'll get the kind of privatisation you want.

[fishtank]

From conference...

Paul Moffatt brought delegates' attention to the recent controversy over workfare (M7) - schemes that force unemployed people into unpaid work under threat of losing their benefits.

"Workfare, or work without pay creates a second-class workforce and compulsion does nothing to help people back to work and out of poverty," he argued, adding: "Let's fight for real jobs and fight for the people of the UK."

Deputy general secretary Dave Ward added his condemnation of the workfare system, and highlighted the clear differences between workfare and the work experience programme that has recently been negotiated between the CWU and Royal Mail and approved by the TUC

Keep selling it Dave.

[TrueBlueTerrier]