NATIONAL BRIEFING REPORT

[lovejoy]

National Dispute Briefing Report
Dear Members

The National briefing held at Friends House, Euston was as expected packed out and a very interesting meeting.

The meeting was opened by Dave Ward DGS(P) and he took representative through the agreement in a section by section presentation.

Dave started by commenting that the dispute had been tough and very bitter. He thanked every representative and member for their magnificent support right from the start of the dispute.

Dave stated that the briefing was about explaining how vital it is that members and representatives across the Country supported the agreement.

He gave 3 key reasons why all members should vote YES

1. We as a union can clearly demonstrate that gains have been made during the course of this dispute
2. The deal on the table is not what Royal Mail wanted. The union has won concessions in every area and members are protected by union involvement in all areas.
3. Reps and members must understand the real core issue in the dispute – Royal Mail wanted a non existent union with an entirely obedient workforce. TOGETHER THE UNION AND THE MEMBERSHIP HAVE TURNED THIS AROUND!

PAY
It was acknowledged that pay is never an easy issue to deal with but we should examine the progress we have made
• Royal Mail started with merely the offer of a one off lump sum
• They then changed to 2.5% plus 22 strings
• They have constantly stated ‘there is no more money’ in several letters to employees
• We now have the opportunity to gain a rise of 6.9% over 2 years plus £400 if local targets are met
• In addition to this we will receive a £175 lump sum paid from ESOS to cover the period April to Oct 07
There are some people putting about the message that the 5,4% from October is the same as 2.5% from April. This is simply not true. In pure cash terms 2.5% = £8.12 rise for OPGs, 5.4% = £17.54.

This is without the fact that the 5.4% will give added value going forward on every pay deal we get in the future.

Our MDEC and LA members were told at the start of the dispute that they would not be included in this pay / modernization agreement. The strength of the CWU members / negotiators has reversed this.

PRODUCTIVITY
The long running debate on colleagueshares still rattles on. Whilst the union have not been able to shift Royal Mail completely at this point we have still forced them to make the first £400 Linked to local change and the rest of the scheme will be up for debate on the joint working party. This represents key movement on one of Royal Mails flagship projects!

The current ESOS scheme will now close. The union and Royal Mail will now undertake a joint audit of the scheme to see if any additional money is due to members.

CHANGES PHASE 1
• Network 2007 - we now have full deployment agreement that representatives can use alongside the IR framework.
• Weekend Working – Local discussions can now take place to look at and negotiate changes to weekend arrangements.
• Night Shifts in Delivery Offices – Royal Mail wanted all night shifts out of delivery offices. CWU have forced Royal Mail back on this and local / area reps must use IR framework to aid negotiations.
• Later Starts- Royal Mails original position was that they would just make the changes. The union has moved them from this and now people receiving MTSF payments from as far back as May 05 will get grandfather rights on their allowances! The agreement also gives all reps the chance to revisit changes and if appropriate reverse some of them. The issue of Saturday start/finish times was also key. The union has forced Royal Mail to return ALL Saturday start / finish time to their old times.
CHANGES PHASE 2
• Flexibility - although nobody will be 100% happy with the changes it cannot be denied that Royal Mail have been shifted dramatically from the position of moving staff by 2hours and completely sidelining the union!
The ideological theory of Royal Mail was that the line managers had complete control of all employees’ workings days. This agreement means that CWU representatives and members have the right to negotiate and influence decisions across the workplace on flexibility.

Reps need to be honest and ask themselves if they can handle some of the situations that this document presents. It can be viewed in two ways. We can turn our backs and pretend that change will never happen or we can stand up and make sure that this union shapes change.

• Longs and Shorts – The national agreements cites this as an option for duty patterns (i.e 7hr Tuesdays, 8.5hr Thurs/Fri). These changes are dependent on mail arrival and workload patterns and can be negotiated locally. The union should not shy away from alternative duty patterns. Reps (as some of ours already do) can propose the introduction of 4day weeks / 9 day fortnights (if this suits membership).
• 30 Minutes Flexibility – Dave Ward emphasised that this was in no way, shape or form compulsory. This should be the exception and not the norm. The issue of the 30 minutes should not be blown into something it is not. It is about give/take in out of the ordinary circumstances.
• Summer Staffing – This is no different from challenges that representatives have faced for many summers now. Reps should ensure that volunteers and reserves are used in the unlikely case that members are asked to work in a near by office. Staff should only be asked to move in extreme circumstances such as flu epidemic in one office whilst there is large surplus of staff in office nearby.

CHANGES PHASE 3
We all need to be honest with ourselves and members. IF staffs are making time then Royal Mail will be after that! Royal Mail wanted to introduce the work all hours rule into all offices with immediate affect. The union has pushed them back from this and this will now be dealt with by agreed and monitored trials.

CHANGES PHASE 4
There has been some criticism of the unions decision to introduce working groups. They issues that will be dealt with could not be resolved and require far more attention to detail. It is yet another point that Royal Mail have been moved on. They stated that there would be no working groups and yet here we are with them as part of a national agreement.

Dave Ward assured members that Monthly pay had not been agreed and neither ha annualized hours or any other issue in the working parties. These things will now be debated, trialed and members will get a vote before any changes may be introduced.

Members also need to look at the outcome of the D2D and MTSF negotiations. Royal Mail had planned to smash the ceiling for D2Ds and remove the MTSF agreement. The massive support of the members has meant that this is not possible! When an agreed outcome is reached on either D2Ds or MTSF this will of course be voted on by members. It is worth noting that the MTSF agreement is mentioned in the very first paragraph of the agreement. Surely this is a significant demonstration of the influence strike action has had.

The PEC are recommending the Agreement because
• It is a good agreement
• It protects members
• Its gives reps chance to shape change
• Union should be confident of influence change and stop avoiding it or hoping that it will not happen. Change is here and now is the time to grab hold of the opportunity to make it benefit us. This opportunity will not come again.
PENSIONS
There is a National Briefing on pensions next Thursday (1/11/07) so this briefing did not go too much into depth on the issue. The points briefly covered included
• Royal Mail wanted pay and pensions linked like managers – we refused and forced them back on this
• 60 day legal pensions consultation will now start
• CWU will consult members views across UK during 60 days
• There is a need to stabalise and protect our pensions
• Union have not committed to anything other than the legal consultation
• ALL ROYAL MAIL GROUP CWU MEMBERS WILL BE BALLOTED ON THE FINAL PENSIONS PROPOSALS AT THE END OF THE 60 DAY PERIOD
As always we will make a full report after next Thursdays briefing
REPS COMMENTS / QUESTIONS

It has to be said that the reaction from the floor to the agreement was mixed. Representatives were worried that management cannot be trusted and also that the agreement is not good enough for what members have given up.

As we sat and watched the debate unfold the key point that MUST be asked by members and representatives is if we reject this document what is next?
• Are members prepared for more action
• Can we move Royal Mail further with more action
• If this deal is unacceptable what is palatable?

It is easy to say no. it is easy to just sit back and refuse change. It is far harder to grab it by the scruff or the neck and start leading members.

It is the view of your national executive that we have won massive concessions and they cannot warrant calling you out for more action. This view will be widely communicated to you over the coming weeks / days. The ballot timetable is still to be finalised but it is likely that papers will be dispatched at the end of next week / beginning of week after.

We all have a choice to make. Your representatives will meet next week and decide on a branch recommendation and we will make sure that you have the communications needed to make an informed choice.

[paul2129]

LOOKS LIKE NO CHANGE THEN EVERTHING WILL BE DRAGGED OUT FOR NEXT FEW MONTHS WITH NO AREA AGREEMENT AND 34 DELIVERY OFFICE AGREEMENTS EACH OFFICE HAVING ITS OWN INTERPRECATION OF THE NEW AGRREMENT IN THE BIRMINGHAM AREA ANY WAY

[BELIAL]

Scandalous, it"S the "DEAL" massive concessions I dont think so ,sorry this was Hayes not crazier?

What an apologist lackie, so wedded to his cosy niche.

You mealy mouthed weasel worded backstabing turncoat, piss off Hayes you f***ing career politician you gotta do better than that.

Do a week at my DO you portly twat ,youd be dead by WEdnesday

[MADMAXMS]

lovejoy once again cheers m8

[lovejoy]

LOOKS LIKE NO CHANGE THEN EVERTHING WILL BE DRAGGED OUT FOR NEXT FEW MONTHS WITH NO AREA AGREEMENT AND 34 DELIVERY OFFICE AGREEMENTS EACH OFFICE HAVING ITS OWN INTERPRECATION OF THE NEW AGRREMENT IN THE BIRMINGHAM AREA ANY WAY

Why can't you have an Area Agreement? Whats to stop a good area rep drawing up a document and sending it to local reps with intructions to stick to it??

[lovejoy]

Scandalous, it"S the "DEAL" massive concessions I dont think so ,sorry this was Hayes not crazier?

What an apologist lackie, so wedded to his cosy niche.

You mealy mouthed weasel worded backstabing turncoat, piss off Hayes you f***ing career politician you gotta do better than that.

Do a week at my DO you portly twat ,youd be dead by WEdnesday

I understand your frustrations. What do you propose as a REAL alternative to this document?

[MADMAXMS]

LOVEJOY AS A FELLOW POSTIE WHAT WILL YOU BE VOTING YES OR NO?

[lovejoy]

LOVEJOY AS A FELLOW POSTIE WHAT WILL YOU BE VOTING YES OR NO?

I will vote Yes and for the following reasons

Any national agreement will contain parts/sections we are unhappy with but this is about the bigger picture. People say that the original document hasn't changed - thats rubbish.

How many mentions were there of the union in Royal Mails final proposals = 0

Now we are on every page! It is laughable that reps/members who took action to defend the union now complain that it has too much influence locally! People say these issues should be dealt with nationally. This is inpracticle and impossible. Reps are elected at every level to lead and i believe good reps will manage this document with no problems.

On the Pay people are saying its the same offer but its not. 2,5% = abou £8 and 5.4% = £17+

Ok so it is not backdated but look at the added value it will give you going forward!

Change is coming whether we like it or not. Right now we have the chance (and i believe the agreement) to influence it.

And lastly and perhaps more importantly what is the alternative. It is easy for reps to say NO, NO, NO but these are the same reps who were struggling to maintain support in some areas!!

if anyone is voting no because they have a plan , strategy and ideas that can take us further forward then lets hear it. If you are saying no because you think change will go away then its wake up time - JUST A PERSONAL VIEW

[UNION IVOR]

THANKS LOVE JOY TOP INFO

[chayoliver]

Im just glad we have decent reps at our office because if you havent i think you could get screwed, the pensions bit is a bit of sell out because royal mail have already announced what they are doing with it and its quite clear that wont change as announced on bbc website, mtsf is one key thing we must fight for. I do agree if we pass a no vote where do we go from here which is why we should have stayed with rolling strikes for a better deal as we had the chance, as we all know there is still an unbelievable backlog which i would say will take at least another week to 2 weeks to fully clear so we had them by the balls which is why i dont understand why we stopped them, i'll still vote no but whats more i hope we can get rid of hayes and ward for the handling of this fight and for the crap communication they gave us as members and for those who were left in sh*t as reps.

[luckyllama]

A brave posting. IWW and Belliache will be along with the normal shed load of abuse any minute now...

[lovejoy]

A brave posting. IWW and Belliache will be along with the normal shed load of abuse any minute now...

I can take it. Thats what a union is all about - being able to voice your opinion

[chayoliver]

LOVEJOY AS A FELLOW POSTIE WHAT WILL YOU BE VOTING YES OR NO?

I will vote Yes and for the following reasons

Any national agreement will contain parts/sections we are unhappy with but this is about the bigger picture. People say that the original document hasn't changed - thats rubbish.

How many mentions were there of the union in Royal Mails final proposals = 0

Now we are on every page! It is laughable that reps/members who took action to defend the union now complain that it has too much influence locally! People say these issues should be dealt with nationally. This is inpracticle and impossible. Reps are elected at every level to lead and i believe good reps will manage this document with no problems.

On the Pay people are saying its the same offer but its not. 2,5% = abou £8 and 5.4% = £17+

Ok so it is not backdated but look at the added value it will give you going forward!

Change is coming whether we like it or not. Right now we have the chance (and i believe the agreement) to influence it.

And lastly and perhaps more importantly what is the alternative. It is easy for reps to say NO, NO, NO but these are the same reps who were struggling to maintain support in some areas!!

if anyone is voting no because they have a plan , strategy and ideas that can take us further forward then lets hear it. If you are saying no because you think change will go away then its wake up time - JUST A PERSONAL VIEW

Fully understand where you coming from with your comments but i feel i cant change my mind i've always voted no on a pay deal

[IWW Fellow Worker]

A brave posting. IWW and Belliache will be along with the normal shed load of abuse any minute now...

I'm always ready to offer a shed load of abuse to management stooges like you. But since you're just a piece of s**t. I'll leave it for now.

Carry on lovejoy, and ignore this bosses lackey.

[lovejoy]

LOVEJOY AS A FELLOW POSTIE WHAT WILL YOU BE VOTING YES OR NO?

I will vote Yes and for the following reasons

Any national agreement will contain parts/sections we are unhappy with but this is about the bigger picture. People say that the original document hasn't changed - thats rubbish.

How many mentions were there of the union in Royal Mails final proposals = 0

Now we are on every page! It is laughable that reps/members who took action to defend the union now complain that it has too much influence locally! People say these issues should be dealt with nationally. This is inpracticle and impossible. Reps are elected at every level to lead and i believe good reps will manage this document with no problems.

On the Pay people are saying its the same offer but its not. 2,5% = abou £8 and 5.4% = £17+

Ok so it is not backdated but look at the added value it will give you going forward!

Change is coming whether we like it or not. Right now we have the chance (and i believe the agreement) to influence it.

And lastly and perhaps more importantly what is the alternative. It is easy for reps to say NO, NO, NO but these are the same reps who were struggling to maintain support in some areas!!

if anyone is voting no because they have a plan , strategy and ideas that can take us further forward then lets hear it. If you are saying no because you think change will go away then its wake up time - JUST A PERSONAL VIEW

Fully understand where you coming from with your comments but i feel i cant change my mind i've always voted no on a pay deal

Like I said thats what a union is all about. Freedom of choice and in this case freedom of vote.