Runcorn posties become latest to refuse to deliver The Sun

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Runcorn posties become latest on Merseyside to refuse to deliver The Sun

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After Skem triumph, St Helens branch also now involved in action against free promotional copies of paper sent out through Royal Mail

Postal workers in Runcorn have become the latest Royal Mail staff to refuse to deliver free copies of The Sun.

Around 80 workers unanimously agreed not to deliver the newspaper at a meeting this morning, arguing that several families of those who died in the Hillsborough tragedy lived in the area.

Staff at Royal Mail’s St Helens branch held a similar meeting at the gates of their workplace today, also agreeing not to deliver The Sun .

Posties in Runcorn have threatened to walk out if they are made to deliver the newspaper.

A postman at the branch, who gave his name as 'Tommy', said: "We had a gate meeting this morning with around 80 members of staff. There was a unanimous vote not to deliver The Sun.

"The plan had been for it to go into four areas – Brookvale/Palacefields, Windmill Hill, Murdishaw, and Sutton Park.

"That could be up to 2,000 homes. The papers are due to be delivered Thursday and Friday and any attempt to force any of the eight or nine staff in those areas to deliver it will result in a walk-out.

"There are a number of Hillsborough families in the Runcorn area."

Staff at the Royal Mail's St Helens branch are also believed to have joined the battle to refuse to deliver The Sun.

Around 100 members of staff are thought to have held a meeting outside the office gates at 6.40am this morning, with support for the boycott said to have been unanimous.

A Communication Workers' Union representative is expected to meet bosses at the branch around 1.30pm today.

St Helens and Runcorn workers will be boosted by claims that staff at the Skem Royal Mail branch appear to have won their battle against delivering the paper.

The postmen and women, who told bosses they refused to post the newspaper’s World Cup promotion edition and vowed to walk out if they were forced to deliver it , today told the ECHO that the company has backed down.

Up to 50 posties at the Skelmersdale branch were told by bosses last Friday they had no choice but to deliver the paper which remains controversial due to its coverage of the Hillsborough disaster.

But, today, one postie was cautiously optimistic that they would not have to deliver it.

He said: “We have been given assurances that there won’t be a delivery of it in Skem. We are obviously a bit cautious because we don’t always believe what the bosses say but it looks 99.9% certain that there won’t be a delivery is Skem now.

"It would be worse if they backtracked now. They wouldn't even have enough man power to deliver it if they did backtrack. So it looks good at the moment.

“It makes us feel very proud – especially with the amount of coverage that it’s had. We all felt very passionate about it.”

Six out of the 50 posties were present at the 1989 tragedy and the staff were asked by many people in Skelmersdale not to deliver it to their homes.

Many Skelmersdale residents knew people who died at Hillsborough and others who survived the tragedy.

The posties were given the news of not having to deliver the paper via the Communication Workers’ Union after a meeting went ahead between company bosses and union chiefs in London on Tuesday, though Royal Mail has not yet confirmed they have backed down. The ECHO also understands that the Neston and Ellesmere Port branches will not be delivering it.

Issues have also been raised over the delivery at Royal Mail's Preston and Essex branches.

[Lounge Lizard]

This could go national.

[Gold Fox]

We are delivering them.

[PHARRY]

We are delivering them.

So are we

[arnold cheshire]

This could go national.

runcorn is very close to liverpool

[TrueBlueTerrier]

This could go national.

runcorn is very close to liverpool

Essex isn't.