Royal Mail offer: Keep fighting until we win the deal members deserve

Text of a Socialist Party leaflet for today’s national CWU reps meeting

Senior CWU reps from all branches are meeting in, without doubt, one of the most important meetings in our history, to discuss the negotiators’ agreement with Royal Mail senior management. 

In what has been the most bitter dispute we have ever seen against the most anti-trade union management, who were hell-bent to smash our union, our members have stood firm. 

We saw the strongest picket lines we have ever seen, but at the same time we have seen around 400 reps and members suspended and a number have been sacked. 

The intention of management was clear from the outset. To break us. To clear the way for more profits to go to the major shareholders at the expense of our members. Members who have been facing the cost-of-living crisis, while at the same time hundreds of millions of pounds have been paid out to shareholders and directors. 

The incredible strike reballot vote shows what our members are made of. But unfortunately, the union’s leadership has allowed momentum to slip, with the last strikes taking place before Christmas. 

What we lose now will be hard to win back 

We have seen proposals that would decimate our hard-won national agreements, won by our members over decades. And they will be hard to win back if we lose them now. Some of the key ones are clearly the attacks on sick pay, attendance procedures, ill health retirement, and worse terms and conditions for new starts. This is alongside executive action taking place all over the country, where members have seen start times changing. We have Royal Mail deliberately failing letters, which we see piling up, and walks failing as a daily occurrence. 

It’s clear our determined action has forced Royal Mail back on a number of issues. But the question is now: 

Have we won enough, or do we prepare to go again? 

The pay offer of around 10% over three years is in real terms a major pay cut for our members when RPI has been 14%. This, with attacks on sick pay, will put our members under increased pressure to maintain their standard of living. 

Our national leaders have stated often recently about the state of the company, but this is directly due to gross mismanagement, and to privatisation, carving up the organisation to leech out huge sums from the most profitable parts. 

Nationalise

CWU’s leaders should have publicly called for the renationalisation of Royal Mail, particularly when Thompson and co threatened administration. The CWU leadership should have demanded that Starmer publicly commit to the policy passed at last autumn’s Labour Party conference, of taking Royal Mail back into public ownership. That could have put real pressure on Sunak’s Tory government who have backed Royal Mail bosses. We need nationalisation with the complete removal of the board. 

We now must oppose this proposal if it is anywhere near what was released last week by management, and regain the momentum we have lost since the last strike action. 

Prepare to keep the fight going until we achieve a deal the members deserve. 

Socialist Party members in CWU and other activists will be calling a meeting soon, and will advertise it on facebook 

• No deal without reinstating victimised and sacked reps and members 
• Coordinate with other unions.If the Tories try to implement their new anti- trade union plans, they must be met with a 24-hour general strike 
• The union leaders and the TUC should launch an mass appeal to build strike funds 
• Kick out the Tories! But Corbyn is banned. Starmer’s New Labour doesn’t speak for us, so fight for a new working-class party. Corbyn should stand! 
• Renationalise Royal Mail, rail, energy and utilities