22/05/2019 Mount Pleasant Bulletin

[jimallen]

Hi, find below the Mount Pleasant bulletin of the 22nd of May. The entire back and front pages are also attached - Comments welcome!

RM PILING UP PROFITS
RM bosses are at it again – they like to complain that
they aren't making as much profit as they'd like, yet this
year's pre-tax profits are £241million! Up 13.6% from
last year! Of course, a large part is thanks to their cuts
to pensions and Ts&Cs – plus our labour. Now we
hear news of Richie Rico's “Five-Year Plan” for RM...

WE NEED OUR OWN “PLAN”!
...Clearly, Rico has been picking up tricks from
Amazon and Co. RM bosses are trying to attack our
Ts&Cs further, with the excuse that all large parcels
have to be processed “outside normal operations”.
What does this mean? They plan to process all
large parcels (format 3&4) in 3 big warehouses. Then
they'll use the opportunity to make our delivery walks
longer (!!), to push delivery drivers' finishing times later
in the evening, and to cut jobs in MCs that would only
process smaller parcels. This “Becoming Amazon
strategy” might please shareholders but is making us
see red!

SENDING OUR PDAs FLYING
We also hear that managers want to keep an eye on
us, by rolling out everywhere the Automated Hours
Data Capture system – which uses our PDA records to
“capture” every move we make outdoors. With the
PDA by our side in the van, it'll feel like we're trapped
with a mini-manager all day long. Maybe we'll get the
urge to open the window and...

THE MORE THE MERRIER
As RM try to launch new attacks against us, we're glad
to see the walkouts continue. Two weeks ago, mates
went out at Medway mail centre (Kent, ME2) and
Paisley DO (Scotland, PA3), against managers' nasty
behaviour. Too right! We've all been feeling the
pressure, in Processing, Distribution and Deliveries.
So if the upcoming strike ballot means the opportunity
to all go out, together, all the better! But this would
need to be taken into our own hands! Isn't it about
time RM bosses got a taste of their own medicine?

CASUALISATION IN THE MAKING
How could there possibly have been any talk about a
“surplus of staff” in HMP, now that managers are
bringing in casuals to fill in the gaps? Casuals are
coming in every Monday on Lates and Friday on
Nights. Even when management try to cover with
overtime, there simply aren't enough of us to do the
work! But frankly, why should we give a monkeys if
their re-sign is a shambles...? We never agreed with
casualisation and don't want to hear about it.

TIME WAITS FOR NO MANAGER
Managers have told us they're going to “wait and see”
how the re-sign pans out?! For two months??? We
didn't need two minutes (let alone two months) to see
that it's a complete mess!

NOT DANCING TO THEIR TUNE
Plus, there's talk of a “mini-fitup” to try and “sort out”
their re-sign. But without recruiting anybody new, what
could this be, but another game of duty musical chairs
like the last time?

PRECARIOUS EVERYTHING
Are we supposed to say thanks to HMP managers for
their “helpful” leaflet, informing us about yet more
building site disruptions? Not only do they want to
offer precarious jobs, they want us to work in a
precarious workplace! And their one-off payment last
month won't do. How many more leaflets are we
supposed to expect?

“I SOLEMNLY SWEAR I'M UP TO NO GOOD...”
Are we back at school again?! On Nights, we in
Distribution are now being greeted by the schoolmaster
(ahem, manager) and his little 'Late Book'. We wonder
what's to come next? Detentions? Writing lines??

BREAKING OUR...
And by the way, in RM-PFS the big Elephant and small
Elephant have come up with a new “bright”(?) idea: to
make us wear heavy safety shoes that make our toes
and knees ache... So what next? Safety hats? So
HMP really has become a building site, with the
uniform and all! For annoying people, the French
expression goes: he is “breaking our feet”... literally!

MIND YOUR P'S (AND Q'S)
Also, what's going on with big Elephant doing rounds in
the toilets, and mopping the floor with toilet tissue to
check for cleanliness...(?!) What does he thinks he'll
find, when 20-30 workers have used the toilets?
Chanel No-5? Or are all of us in HMP supposed to
hold it in, to satisfy his standards? Petty, really...