Q&A: Royal Mail postal strikes

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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A series of 24-hour postal strikes is underway across the country. How will this affect your mail services and what are your rights?

Who is on strike?

Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) are staging a series of 24-hour strikes across the country. The strikes, which started in mid-July, are part of an ongoing dispute between the union and Royal Mail over pay, jobs and services. The current round of strikes started last Friday and is expected to continue until the end of this week. CWU claim that 125,000 members have so far taken part in this latest round of action.

Where are they striking?

Today the strike hit Kings Lynn, Stanton, Bury St Edmonds, Thetford and the Ipswich mail centre in East Anglia, and Alloa, Dunfermline, Cowdenbeath and Grangemouth in Scotland.

On Tuesday, workers in Stoke-on-Trent will go out on strike.

In London, around 12,000 workers involved in delivery, collection and driving will be on strike. A spokeswoman for the CWU said all of central London would be affected, as well as large areas of greater London.

On Thursday, a distribution centre near Bristol will be affected.

What impact are the strikes having?

Royal Mail says the majority of its national and international mail network is operating as normal and guaranteed delivery services have, in general, been unaffected. Things are now getting back to normal in the areas affected by strike action at the end of last week.

However, services appear to be seriously disrupted in the areas hit by today's strikes. In East Anglia, for instance, the Eastern Daily Press has reported that around 16,500 homes in Kings Lynn and Thetford have not received deliveries as a result of the strike.

Royal Mail says it expects Tuesday's strike in Stoke and Thursday's strike in Bristol to affect only mail collections, with deliveries expected as normal, but that households and businesses in London look set to be hit hard by Wednesday's strike. Business collections will be limited across vast swathes of the capital, deliveries may be limited to items sent via premium services like Special Delivery and Royal Mail Tracked, and redeliveries of mail across all London postcodes will be not be available on Wednesday or Thursday.

Full details for all disrupted areas are available on the Royal Mail website.

When will I get my post?

A spokesman for Royal Mail said it generally took a few days after a strike for the backlog to be cleared, although in some instances post was arriving more quickly. If your postman is on strike this week you should expect to get your mail early next week, if not before.

What if I am expecting or sending something urgent?

If you are sending something urgent you should use a guaranteed service to make sure it gets through the strike. Sending something special delivery allows you to track an item.

If you are waiting for something important, for example tickets, you could face problems if it has been sent first class. Royal Mail says customers who have experienced difficulties should contact customer services, however a spokesman warns that "consequential compensation is not paid on first-class mail – it has never been a guaranteed service". In layman's terms, if you've had to buy new train tickets because yours haven't arrived: tough.

Will the strikes end this week?

This round of strikes is set to finish by the end of the week, but the CWU is balloting its members for a national strike in September.

[DGP1]

The strikes, which started in mid-July, are part of an ongoing dispute between the union and Royal Mail over pay, jobs and services

Not about pay, it's about what RM think is modernisation, the constant attacks on our terms and conditions and the cuts to the services. The union really need to get onto the press and let them know this dispute has nothing to do with our pay.

[Big Daz]

Id suggest HQ stop using the word pay, what are the media supossed to think when Dave Ward and co give a very clear impression pay is part of the issue?

[Night Tonic]

Seems to me that the reasons shift all the time, same as the last dispute. CWU are already saying its a row with the government. You watch, in a months time modernisation won't even be mentioned by Wardy. By then it'll be unions versus the government or some other nonsense, and still no end in sight except everyone a darned sight poorer with so much money lost through strikes. Pays your money and makes your choice.

[stokes11eg]

The strikes, which started in mid-July, are part of an ongoing dispute between the union and Royal Mail over pay, jobs and services

Not about pay, it's about what RM think is modernisation, the constant attacks on our terms and conditions and the cuts to the services. The union really need to get onto the press and let them know this dispute has nothing to do with our pay.

quite right D.G.P. This is where the Unions let us down time and again,at one time for every press release put out that
that seemed to support R/M the Union would get straight back with a counter argument.And it is time the word 'Modernisation 'was clarified---the word is misleading at the very least, it should be replaced with the word destruction.I have a terrible sinking feeling that B.H is probably still in cahoots with R/M, still trying to help the Government bring around this 'Modernisation"------who said about lions being lead by donkeys?

[steven100]

Our office had a vote on pay and modernisation and got a NO VOTE for strike action. Our office has already modernised so really striking on the issue was pointless and pay well, recession is happening so can't expect much of a pay rise.
I was disppointed with the outcome but as a weak office its hardly surprising. Lets see how they enjoy going part-time. Thankfully i'll be gone before this kicks in.