Post strike threat: Fury as Royal Mail say they will dock wages after snow disruption

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.dunfermlinepress.com/news/16 ... ke_threat/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

WEST FIFE posties are set to strike after Royal Mail said they would dock wages for staff who didn’t make it into work because of last week’s snow.

Despite the red alert which brought Scotland to a standstill, workers have been told they will have to work extra hours, take holiday or have pay deducted for the time missed.

The local branch of the Communications Workers Union have now voted to request a strike ballot in response to what Dunfermline Delivery Centre’s union rep Garry Haldane described as “disgraceful” treatment from Royal Mail.


He told the Press: “We shut on Wednesday night and they still opened up the delivery offices on Thursday and Friday. They are saying if the office is open, it is our responsibility to get to work so it is a purely monetary thing for them.

“Nothing was moving at all. There was a red alert where we were being advised not to travel for anything.

“We have just voted for a strike ballot and hopefully a lot of other branches are doing the same and Royal Mail will come to the table and discuss it.

"The Scottish Government came out and said ‘Do not travel’ and they will be looking at taking legal action against companies who are taking money off people.

“It is absolutely disgraceful. Some who lived close by maybe managed to get in but they went in to be told to come home again. It was a money-saving thing. They clearly had not thought about the consequences and our safety.”

A Royal Mail spokesperson said they had no official notice of any ballot for strike action as yet.

“Royal Mail has a clear adverse weather policy for employees who are unable to get into work,” said the spokesperson.

“Employees should, in the first instance, speak to their line manager about any issues. All employees are able to use annual leave or make up the time lost. Employees can also, if they prefer, take unpaid time off if they are unable to attend work.

“If a site has been closed by the business or, because of disruption there is no work to be processed or delivered, employees would receive their normal pay.”

[worktotime]

this isn't a good advert for the new cwu agreement of the culture of this company and the way they treat the staff , and this could bite them on the arse with a NO vote , good luck to all of you and well done for standing up , royal mail should be ashamed of themselves .

[Lincox]

The question to be asked is. Did all RM Managers and Executive Staff attend work. If not will their not inconsiderable pay also be deducted, and why does Moya Greene allow them to leave work early on a Saturday without deduction of pay.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

The question to be asked is. Did all RM Managers and Executive Staff attend work. If not will their not inconsiderable pay also be deducted, and why does Moya Greene allow them to leave work early on a Saturday without deduction of pay.

Sadly because they are salaried they have no defined hours, therefore their pay cannot be cut.

Wage
Wages are paid to employees on an hourly, daily or weekly basis.

Salary
Salary is a set amount of money paid to an employee each month or year, no matter how many hours he works. You can use the term to refer to a monthly amount of money an employee receives or to the yearly amount an employee gets for doing her job. A salary is paid at a set time on a recurring basis, and it is always the same amount of money.

[tractorboy2]

So , if we were paid monthly , and never did overtime , this would apply to us as well ?

[Burghboy]

I went home on the Thursday to look after my son as schools where off my colleagues then got sent home 90 mins after me, the day after I phoned work to ask situation told them I would get someone to watch kid if we where working manager told me there would be no chance we were going out on delivery so not bother, collugues sent home 20 mins after my start time.

Returned to work and was told I could take holidays or make the time back. Agreed to work the time back manager says fine your due us 2 full shifts. So I missed under 2 hours work yet they want 12 hours in return.

Spoke to union rep and seemingly there are a few in my DO in same boat.

[fishtank]

Management use the TOIL(banked hours) system anyway. To be fair they had the same rules applied as us but when you can repay the hours by coming in on your day off and sitting on your arse drinking coffee and emailing a couple of bods it's not really the same. DOMs can also choose to "work from home"....

The real issue here isn't pay or annual leave, it's the decision making structure in the business, accountability and the reasons behind those decisions.

Senior Royal Mail managers knew there would be no work available or any possibility of deliveries in these affected areas so why did they encourage staff to travel to work during a red alert potentially putting lives at risk and why by refusing to pay staff are they reinforcing that decision despite censure from the Scottish government.

Those are the questions that need to be put to the board. Where's Terry and his cusp. He's been very quiet on the issue as has most of HQ and the usual mouthpieces.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

So , if we were paid monthly , and never did overtime , this would apply to us as well ?

No, salaried people have no fixed hours - we do. Changing to monthly and no overtime has no effect on whether you are paid a wage or a salary.

[hans solo]

just vote no

[midegarelu]

just vote no