100,000 postal workers ballot for strike action

Gary Clark, CWU branch secretary, Scotland No.2 branch (personal capacity)

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has held briefings over terms and conditions, firstly jointly with Parcelforce reps and then with all the senior Royal Mail reps. The mood at both meetings was extreme anger.

The CWU took the decision to ballot all members – up to 100,000 – across the whole group due to the actions of Royal Mail’s senior leadership.

Royal Mail is led by Rico Back who has built his reputation in the business world on a non-unionised low-cost model to such an extent that his GLS company was subject to an undercover investigation by a reporter who worked there.

The reporter described slave-like conditions which are clearly Rico Back’s vision for Royal Mail.

But Rico Back has not banked on the CWU in his calculations. He told Terry Pullinger, CWU deputy general secretary (postal), “I am the CEO, I can do what I like.”

Clearly he’s in for a shock as there is an army of postal workers in the CWU getting ready to take him on.

Under the ‘four pillars’ national agreement we are due another hour off the working week this October, but they have stated that this will only be given if every office makes 5% ‘savings’ to a workforce already pushed to its limits, with a culture of bullying management.

This has led to a series of walkouts across the country.

Our hard work

It’s very clear that Rico Back was appointed CEO with a ‘golden hello’ of £6 million, not just to keep a steady ship but to take on and break the CWU for his capitalist friends and the hedge funds. They correctly see the CWU in the way of their making millions upon millions out of our hard work.

It’s also clear this is going to be a bitter dispute. But the CWU have now taken the gloves off and we will be addressing every single member in the coming weeks.

We will be preparing for the most massive Yes vote, followed by industrial action, the likes of which we haven’t seen for several years.