20/07/17 Mount Pleasant Bulletin from Anna and Jim

[jimallen]

Hi there, here's the Mount Pleasant bulletin of the 20th of July. We'll have our usual summer break, so next post in September!

WE’RE CONFUSED
We’re not sure what the union officials are doing re RM’s
pension proposal. They say they reject it and seem to say
we should prepare for a strike ballot, but at the same time
we read on the other side of their Bulletin#7 that they are
“urging RM to reconvene meaningful talks on pensions”! So
what is it? Talks or strike?

WHAT “MUTUAL” INTEREST?
The CWU also speaks of these talks taking place in
“keeping with our mutual interest agreement”” as they call it,
as if the bosses who exploit us for the sake of making profit
for their big company shareholders could ever have the
same interests as we have!

IT’S CALLED “UNITE”- WHERE’S THE UNITY?
Besides, we hear that CMA-Unite is actually balloting its
6,000 managers over this pension offer. While we don’t feel
in solidarity with managers over anything else, the blatant
theft of our pensions by RM does bring us together and
surely we should actually be organising our strategy to fight
the robbers, together? How come this separate ballot is
even happening?

IF RM PAID, WE'D GO TOMORROW!
So now in Processing, we're offered a bribe to take EVRs in
December: an extra 6-weeks off, on basic pay, if we’d agree
to go in November instead of 23rd December. When it
would mean losing Xmas bonus, and the extras in SA and
OT, which help us cope with Xmas expenses! So yes, we’d
like to go as soon as possible, but we want full pay +Xmas
bonus+all extras we’d have made!
PS: And why is RM not giving the same "incentive" to
those of us taking EVR in September? Well, of course, in
September RM doesn’t usually pay bonuses, so it doesn't
find it necessary to make up a fake bribe…

CHAOS IN THE AIR… AS USUAL
It's easy to predict utter chaos at Xmas… more than it
usually is already - given the many workmates leaving in
Sept and Dec! Or are managers planning to recruit a lot
more low-paid casuals this year (because recruiting
permanent hands doesn't come to these "brilliant" minds), or
divert work to load onto the backs of our mates in other
Processing centres?

RE-SIGN RESIGNED
It was so predictable that something would snap after all the
Distribution driving job cuts. And it did after the re-sign...
because all the cut SA had just been incorporated into the
new runs, which made them nigh impossible to do in the
time! Managers had to try to undo their cock-up. But things
can only improve if they reverse ALL their cuts.

MP PROCESSING TO GO
The selling off of HGV/van stopping space, coming with the
London Mayor’s "crack down" on pollution and a new
"London lorry standard" looks ominous, making the
downgrading of MP to a DO a real possibility. That said,
very little RM decides ever actually happens... International
sorting was supposed to disappear 15 years ago!

GREEN(E), MY A**E
As for going green, RM was meant to do an electric van trial
many years ago… when UPS had already introduced
electric vans in London. RM had a chance to do something
then, but didn’t. It can still do it.

HEADS ROLLING
In processing, and everywhere else in HMP for that matter,
many managers feel they are the "kings and queens" of this
place... and treat us like serfs. Maybe we could give them a
history lesson and show them how the exploited handled the
royals in the past?

MISTAKEN WORDING
This letter RM HR wrote to PFS (ex-Romec) workers wasn’t
even checked! It claimed we’d authorised something we
didn’t!! But when we called HR all we got was music -
holding on a premium rate! What kind of HR is this?
Definitely UN-Resourced by humans! Apologies aren’t
enough! And we’re sending our phone bills!

NOT IMPRESSED
The long service vouchers are just pathetic: they amount out
at £10 for every year you worked!

SOON TO BE BEST-DRESSED?
Oh and we’re so pleased to hear that PFS is taking such
trouble over our uniforms that they’re consulting all and
sundry. We now expect super outfits, shorts, skirts, hats, a
raincoat, sunglasses... However in the same breath we’re
told that “SLAM” is to become “Be Safe”... we hope this
won’t be printed on our backs?

YES, THUNDER AND LIGHTNING NEEDED
Anyone seen the union poster which says “we are the
storm”? We should be. And not in a teacup.

[baldrick]

IF RM PAID, WE'D GO TOMORROW!
So now in Processing, we're offered a bribe to take EVRs in
December: an extra 6-weeks off, on basic pay, if we’d agree
to go in November instead of 23rd December. When it
would mean losing Xmas bonus, and the extras in SA and
OT, which help us cope with Xmas expenses! So yes, we’d
like to go as soon as possible, but we want full pay +Xmas
bonus+all extras we’d have made!
PS: And why is RM not giving the same "incentive" to
those of us taking EVR in September? Well, of course, in
September RM doesn’t usually pay bonuses, so it doesn't
find it necessary to make up a fake bribe…

The Xmas bonus is only £100 - and that is reduced if you are off work during the Xmas pressure period, through sickness or IA.
I would rather have the 6 weeks Pay In Lieu Of Notice, and lose the Xmas bonus. Is it worth working 6 weeks more than necessary for a measly £100?

[SpacePhoenix]

CHAOS IN THE AIR… AS USUAL
It's easy to predict utter chaos at Xmas… more than it
usually is already - given the many workmates leaving in
Sept and Dec! Or are managers planning to recruit a lot
more low-paid casuals this year (because recruiting
permanent hands doesn't come to these "brilliant" minds), or
divert work to load onto the backs of our mates in other
Processing centres?

Who will either send it straight back or divert some of their work to another MC, who diverts some of there work to another MC until MP get the same amount of work back in diversions from another MC