Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change Agreement

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A Special Report to the CWU National Postal Policy Forum on the 28th June 2012

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Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change
A National Agreement between Royal Mail and CWU


Background

A key part of our Phase 2 agenda for national talks was to finalise a new agreement on Job Security.

From the Union’s perspective this has been about extending and strengthening our Job Security Agreements in what we all know is the most challenging environment the CWU postal side has ever been confronted by.

The need to deliver extended job security for our members was also part of Emergency Motion 3 agreed at Annual Conference 2011 and was seen as an essential response to the real possibility of our members working for a privatised company at some point in the future.

Prior to Annual Conference the Postal Executive were provided with a proposed draft agreement and given the opportunity to make some initial comments before further and final negotiations took place. Feedback at that stage was positive and in a recent LTB, published to Branches at Annual Conference, we committed to bring back any final Job Security Agreement to a National Policy Forum.

Agreement Reached

National talks concluded on Friday 25th May and we have attached at Appendix A, a copy of the full Agreement, the salient points of which are as follows:-

• Reaffirmation that the overarching objective of Business Transformation is to introduce and complete all transformation programmes without recourse to compulsory redundancy.

• Confirmation that all our existing job security commitments and those covered in this new agreement, are now extended to cover all future Royal Mail change.

• Reaffirmation as part of the extended agreement, that all full time employees will retain full time status and part time employees will retain their existing hours if they wish.

• Extended agreement that the current MTSF VR terms and enhanced ETE payments, will now continue to at least April 2014. This will be reviewed towards the end of 2013 using the same criteria that has delivered the extended terms.

• Agreement to the current resourcing model of predominantly full time employees being extended for Royal Mail’s ongoing business strategy and its operations.

• Additional and improved safeguards for resourcing permanent and fixed term contracts and the utilisation of agency staff.

• Part time employees will be given the opportunity to increase their contracted hours in line with the hours they actually work.

• Reaffirmation of the MTSF VR process alongside a stronger process for HR1 redundancy notification.

• The new agreement is not time limited and is incorporated into a new framework which confirms key values and principles of the company.

Conclusion

Given the huge challenges facing the postal industry, including modernisation, competition, the digital age and now the very real threat of privatisation, this new Job Security Agreement should be seen as a major achievement for our members and the Union. Crucially, the agreement now covers all future change and is not time limited.

Similarly, in the face of End to End competition, an extended commitment to the current resoucing model (75/25 full time to part time split) being confirmed as integral to Royal Mail’s ongoing business strategy, is very much welcome.

Additionally, the resourcing and managing change principles contained in the agreement, applied correctly, give us the strongest possible basis for addressing longstanding problems around the contractual status of the workforce.

As far as MTSF is concerned, the reaffirmation of the overall agreement and the extension of the current VR and ETE terms to at least April 2014, is once again very good news. The Union will look to maintain these principles in future reviews.

We have attached a covering letter (Appendix B) from Royal Mail, which is helpful in clarifying both the status of the agreement with Parcelforce and other issues that will form part of further important discussions with the company.


We have no hesitation in recommending the new Job Security Agreement to the CWU Postal Policy Forum on the 28th June.


RECOMMENDATION: That this Postal Policy Forum endorses the
Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change National Agreement.

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APPENDIX
A



Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change

A National Agreement between Royal Mail and
Communication Workers’ Union


1. Introduction

Royal Mail and CWU reaffirm that the overarching objective of the Business Transformation Agreement is to introduce and complete all transformation programmes without recourse to compulsory redundancies.

Royal Mail and CWU recognise that by aligning the interests of employees, customers and the company, we are best able to place the Royal Mail Group on a viable future footing. It is by delivering the future success of the company that we can achieve greater long term job security.

The purpose of this Agreement is to extend all existing job security commitments and incorporate these into a new framework that covers Royal Mail’s approach to all future change and resourcing. The Agreement reflects the key values and principles of how the company will continue to manage change in all workplaces.

2. Job Security Principles

2.1. The overarching objective will be for the Royal Mail Group to deliver all future change without recourse to compulsory redundancy. To maintain this commitment, employees will need to be flexible and adaptable when considering reasonable and suitable alternative jobs and work locations.

2.2 Full time employees will retain full time status unless they volunteer to move to part time hours. Part time employees will be entitled to retain their existing contractual hours if they wish.

2.3. The Royal Mail Group and CWU have an excellent record of working together to resolve employee surplus situations and we will continue to use the full range of options contained in the Business Transformation and Managing the Surplus Framework national agreements.

The Managing the Surplus Framework Agreement will continue to operate as now including the terms for voluntary redundancy, pay protection, excess travel and relocation situations.

Under the Business Transformation Agreement, changes to MtSF terms (some VR and ETE payments) were due to be implemented in April 2013. These changes were subject to review in October 2012 in the light of the financial position of the company and the progress of the transformation programme at that time. This review has been brought forward, and the current terms have now been extended until April 2014. The same review criteria will now apply in October 2013.


3. Royal Mail Resourcing and Managing Change Principles

The following principles represent Royal Mail’s approach to resourcing and will be applied throughout the business:

3.1 The overall resourcing model for Royal Mail’s ongoing business strategy and its operations will continue to be predominantly full time supported by part time employees. The overall national mix is expected to continue to be three quarters full time and one quarter part time.

3.2 Royal Mail employees will be employed on permanent contracts, except where there is a genuine short term need identified. CWU will be consulted in advance where there is any such requirement. Temporary contracts will not exceed two years unless it has been jointly agreed that there are very exceptional circumstances. The position of temporary contract employees will be kept under regular review by the local parties, with a view to converting to permanent contracts where and when possible. Additionally, where change programmes have been completed and bedded in, the status of temporary contract employees will be reviewed and converted to permanent contracts unless there is no need for this additional resourcing or where there is an identified and agreed need to continue with a fixed term contract. Royal Mail confirms that as part of the review of this agreement, it is the aspiration to reduce the length of temporary contracts to no more than one year.

3.3 The level of part timers’ contracted hours will be jointly reviewed locally on
a six monthly basis. Where appropriate, increased contracted hours will be
offered to reflect the hours actually worked and planned.

3.4 Agency workers are intended to cover short term or unforeseen resourcing
needs expected to last for periods of no more than 12 weeks, which cannot be covered by offering additional earnings opportunities to existing employees whilst maintaining quality of service. In the rare circumstances that employment exceeds 12 weeks the comparable pay provisions of the agency workers’ regulations will apply.

3.5. It is essential that the ongoing local resourcing requirements are subject to regular consultation between Royal Mail and CWU as part of the mandatory weekly resourcing meetings.

3.6 Regular meetings to discuss local resourcing issues will identify whether a potential surplus staffing situation will arise. At this point consultation between Royal Mail and the CWU about how to deal with any surplus will take place in line with the Managing the Surplus Framework Agreement. Where it is jointly identified through this process that there is a need for a number of VRs, the provisions of MTSF will again apply. Where the numbers legally require it, a formal HR1 letter will be provided to CWU Headquarters and this will explain the reasons for proposed redundancies. The letter will also confirm that CWU reps are aware of the proposal and that discussions are taking place in line with the Industrial Relations Framework and other relevant national agreements,

4. Deployment

To support successful deployment of this agreement, Royal Mail and CWU will implement the following:

• Articles on the agreement in The Voice and Courier with agreed key messages
• Joint employee briefing
• Communications to managers and representatives


5. Review

This Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change national agreement is not time limited. The agreement will be subject to two yearly reviews with the intention of maintaining these principles in a rapidly evolving market place. Additionally there will be periodic reviews at national and regional/divisional level with appropriate information supplied to ensure the principles of this agreement are applied in practice.

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APPENDIX
B





Dear Dave,

Job Security, Resourcing and Managing Change Agreement

In reaching this agreement you asked me to clarify some further points.

Part time workers

You raised certain matters relating to part timers’ terms and conditions which we agreed were out of scope in this agreement. We agreed to look at them further when we discuss pay in phase 3 of these talks.

Angard

You have asked for further urgent discussions on Angard and we have agreed to this.

Parcelforce Worldwide

I can confirm that the extension of the current VR terms set out in the agreement includes Parcelforce Worldwide employees.

Exploring Legally Binding Agreements

We have both agreed to explore further whether the issues covered in this agreement may be legally binding. This is clearly a complex matter which we are looking at in phase 3 of our talks on a wider basis, and this agreement will be included in our discussions on this issue at the time.

Yours sincerely


Mike Newby

[Everitt]

WOW that's fab

[fishtank]

If they can be held to it,especially over part-time and fixed term issues it's impressive.
If it is ignored,and the ignoring is ignored as has been the case in the past...it's worthless.
I'm impressed and hopeful...but cautious.

[Everitt]

Do you think they will honour the VR terms and no compulsary redundancies though

[fishtank]

Do you think they will honour the VR terms til 2014 and no compulsory redundancies?

Yes.
My worries are more about the monitoring of the 75/25 split,moving part-timers onto more realistic contracts and progressing temporary to permanent.

[dvbuk55]

I am extremely pleased to see that the current 75/25 split has been reaffirmed but what I would really be pleased to see is what the current split is, who's monitoring it and who is providing the data. It's the same old same old, "mandatory weekly resource meetings will decide" FA because they don't occur - lapsing? - still waiting for a reply from the union "Delivery Resource Tool" - great if it was undertood - lapsing decided on a daily basis no it's 4 duties lapsed 6 days a week for the foreseeable future.

The words look grand and important BUT the reality is as far away from that as we are from the moon. As for branches contacting members get real ffs.

[dvbuk55]

Do you think they will honour the VR terms til 2014 and no compulsory redundancies?

Yes.
My worries are more about the monitoring of the 75/25 split,moving part-timers onto more realistic contracts and progressing temporary to permanent.

They are pretty much obliged to honour the VR terms until at least 2014 because BT2010, although running out in 2013, won't be complete until long after that.

[hans solo]

wouldnt trust them

[POSTMAN]

Most of it we've already got...
Most of it we've already got...
Most of it we've already got...
Most of it we've already got...
Most of it we've already got...

Feck,bloody copy/paste,it's catching.

[Biker Mouse]

"A Special Report to the CWU National Postal Policy Forum on the 28th June 2012"

Is this supposed to be with immediate effect or just a wishlist?

[Talell]

It's a draft agreement that is going in front of the policy forum to be amended and consequently agreed to be put in front of RM, so it's still subject to negotiation

[Biker Mouse]

It's a draft agreement that is going in front of the policy forum to be amended and consequently agreed to be put in front of RM, so it's still subject to negotiation

Thanks!

[dodger162]

Is there anything yet on colleague share?