New agreement vote

[Budfrog]

Disapointing,was hoping for something good on workload issues. payrise no different,only good thing is 3 yrs to 5 yrs .But quite a lot of us might be begging for EVR by then.

Bearing in mind that MTSF will be re-visited in just over a year ... EVR may not be quite so attractive as you think ;)

[mark02]

its got to be a yes backpay alone is worth 500 quid ive still got to put food on table and 350+ for an unskilled glorified paper round??

Well said . The people who complain on here are people who can't do the job, which is a small minority, the vote will be over 80 per cent yes , so don't delude yourself! Its upto you if u want to let yourself be bullied, its the same in any walk of life, you have to stand up for yourself

[Garzongos]

This is a bit like the Independence row going on up here in Scotland. Loads of people telling you why you should or should not do something but no real reason why?

Me personally, I have a p&l duty which 90% of the year I finish before my time, so why should I not say yes? 3% a year is way above what most people are receiving these days as well as protection for the next five years. Am I just deluded and our office is living in a bubble away from the real Royal Mail? We are all reasonably happy in our jobs while doing walking runs or p&l over a 4 hour period.

If I am getting it all wrong and its a massively different picture out there could someone please explain to me like I'm a five year old?

p.s we hear rumours London still do 2 1/2 hour walks, is this just malicious storytelling or is it true?

[windermeredave]

if we vote no to this are you seriously asking CWU to go back to the table and get us a better deal? Christ they`ve been talking now for god knows how long. we just won`t get a better deal than this, and I`m convinced to vote will endorse this.

[eggraidonmojo]

If a No vote won (unlikely I know), what would happen then?

More negotiations? Strikes in 2014?

I am a relatively new temp part time postie in a DO. I quite like being part-time as it suits me, but I'd like to get on a permanent contract. It seems the agreement says something positive about that.

I have a question though:

The 'no-strike' element of the deal does seem a bit worrying: but surely if it came to it and the union called a strike vote, we would be hoping that we could win the dispute (which, say, was about workload in deliveries/B&H) without the company touching the legally binding protections. If the company ripped up the protections then they would be looking at a future of industrial instability and a cut to their profits...

So, is it really a no strike agreement?

Also, does anybody know when the next election is for the big positions in the CWU?

I would have gone on strike in November, and I'll still go out if it comes to it, but I am tempted to vote for this since it seems the best we are going to get at the moment. I just find it difficult to see what the strategy would be if a No vote was successful...

[weary_posty]

It will be a yes for me.
My main concern was our t&cs and now that's upped to 5 years I'm happy.

I'm only young and have a mortgage and family to look after. £200 Xmas bonus, + £200 from the deal and the back payment which I guess will be in the new year how could I say no?

It's tough times out there and I think a few members on here are stuck in the "golden" age of labour where people could afford to hold out a bit longer.

[k979aaa]

It is big NO from me it is not the money just the issues we all wanted resolved have been swept under the carpet for another day and those days are ticking on this agreement that has more get out clauses than a Ryanair flight!

[feduppostie]

This is a bit like the Independence row going on up here in Scotland. Loads of people telling you why you should or should not do something but no real reason why?

Me personally, I have a p&l duty which 90% of the year I finish before my time, so why should I not say yes? 3% a year is way above what most people are receiving these days as well as protection for the next five years. Am I just deluded and our office is living in a bubble away from the real Royal Mail? We are all reasonably happy in our jobs while doing walking runs or p&l over a 4 hour period.

If I am getting it all wrong and its a massively different picture out there could someone please explain to me like I'm a five year old?

p.s we hear rumours London still do 2 1/2 hour walks, is this just malicious storytelling or is it true?

Ok i'll try - on the surface this is a good deal decent payrise, backdated, lump sum BUT we also have a no strike clause ( despite being told the union would never agree a no strike clause)

so what do we do if we accept this deal and in say 2 years RM say 'due to operational reasons work times for all full timers is now 9 - 5 mon - sat, part timers start between 10.30 and 12.00 and finish at 5, due to increasing customer demand it will be mandatory to work 1 Sunday in 4 on a rota system'

now this is just me throwing out some stuff that would probably never happen - but what if it did - with a no strike clause what exactly do you think we could do about it? What do you think the union could do about it?

[egor110]

It will be a yes for me.
My main concern was our t&cs and now that's upped to 5 years I'm happy.

I'm only young and have a mortgage and family to look after. £200 Xmas bonus, + £200 from the deal and the back payment which I guess will be in the new year how could I say no?

It's tough times out there and I think a few members on here are stuck in the "golden" age of labour where people could afford to hold out a bit longer.

But the 5 years isn't guaranteed, if the company can no longer afford it or the union call a strike royal mail can pull the plug on all terms and conditions.

[dazzlin72]

Know wonder the union wanted to keep quiet about this crock of s**t deal until the last opportune moment.

[Theghost]

Lots of Newish posters,All parping on why people should accept.
This lump sum of back pay will change your lives will it? Get a grip and look at the bigger picture here,Look at the s**t that is going on in your workplaces on a daily basis.
I am watching people in our office get harrassed and bullied into nervous breakdowns,2 last week.
Sell your souls if the money was right i bet.
All i have heard the last few weeks is people saying if the payrise has no backdated pay im voting no,Then just because a taxable 4 - £500 is offered then the yes votes roll in,Shameless.

[fishtank]

The 'no-strike' element of the deal does seem a bit worrying: but surely if it came to it and the union called a strike vote, we would be hoping that we could win the dispute (which, say, was about workload in deliveries/B&H) without the company touching the legally binding protections. If the company ripped up the protections then they would be looking at a future of industrial instability and a cut to their profits...

So, is it really a no strike agreement?

Yes.
Who in their right mind is going to vote for national industrial action with all that at stake?
f**k...even I would vote no.

So since the union is well aware that the stakes would be far too high to ever risk balloting the membership over national industrial action and any call would definitely be rejected by the membership it is most definitely and without doubt a long term(as long as the protections remain in place) National No Strike Agreement.
Did I ever think I would see this day?....No.

[k979aaa]

The 'no-strike' element of the deal does seem a bit worrying: but surely if it came to it and the union called a strike vote, we would be hoping that we could win the dispute (which, say, was about workload in deliveries/B&H) without the company touching the legally binding protections. If the company ripped up the protections then they would be looking at a future of industrial instability and a cut to their profits...

So, is it really a no strike agreement?

Yes.
Who in their right mind is going to vote for national industrial action with all that at stake?
f**k...even I would vote no.

So since the union is well aware that the stakes would be far too high to ever risk balloting the membership over national industrial action and any call would definitely be rejected by the membership it is most definitely and without doubt a long term(as long as the protections remain in place) National No Strike Agreement.
Did I ever think I would see this day?....No.

It is what it is a NO STRIKE DEAL vote for this and you all better start looking for a new job as they the ROYAL MAIL could impose anything in the short or long term and you cannot strike so with our hands tied behind our backs we walk into work! IF THIS SO CALLED DEAL IS VOTED IN DON'T LOOK AT THE MONEY LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO FOR IT!

[BernardBresslaw]

Look at all those saying 'yes' with only a handful of posts to their name.

Management plants would be my guess. The mind games have started already! They will be carving up your jobs next. Brace yourselves.

[eggraidonmojo]

Yes.
Who in their right mind is going to vote for national industrial action with all that at stake?
f**k...even I would vote no.

So since the union is well aware that the stakes would be far too high to ever risk balloting the membership over national industrial action and any call would definitely be rejected by the membership it is most definitely and without doubt a long term(as long as the protections remain in place) National No Strike Agreement.
Did I ever think I would see this day?....No.

Okay, I'm sure you're right - I was just trying to be optimistic I suppose.

Does anybody know how many times a membership has defied its leaders' recommendations and voted against a deal? Has it ever happened?

Is there any reason to think this will happen or is voting no now just going to be a gesture?

Re: new forum members saying 'vote yes'.

I've only posted on here a couple of times. I joined the forum a year ago when I started as a casual at RM. I don't post much because I don't have a huge amount to say, but I enjoy reading the forum because it's about a job that I actually like quite a lot most of the time (unlike most other jobs I've had).