National Agreement Between Parcelforce Worldwide and the CWU for the Implementation of Depot Revisions
Branches and representatives will be aware that the issue of the Parcelforce revision process has been an issue which has been subject of discussions between the business and the department for some time. In the 2012 pay agreement a commitment was made to redesign the process and in 2013 the following motion was carried at Annual Conference:
“Motion 16 (Category A):
This conference recognises and applauds Parcelforce Worldwide’s success and on-going expansion programme resulting in an increase in parcel traffic and revenue. Therefore it is imperative that a revised Depot Route Revision Procedure is negotiated to ensure that Parcelforce Worldwide quality of service is maintained”.
In September of 2013 the department issued LTB 640/2013 which publicised a Joint Statement that had been agreed which detailed the process of developing the potential for a new approach to depot route revision procedures. Unfortunately progress was interrupted with the event of the Agenda for Growth, Stability & Long Term Success discussions. However, the commitment to conclude a position in relation to the revision process was reinforced in those discussions and is included in the Parcelforce Programme of Works section of the agreement.
We are all aware that the difficult and exceptional period of growth and traffic fluctuation we have been experiencing in Parcelforce has left many unbalanced routes, bad resourcing practices and genuine threats to our trade mark excellent QofS.
Against that backdrop the department believes that the attached agreement that has been concluded with the business represents a continuing pragmatic ‘Proof of Concept’ response, which builds upon the three trials conducted at London Central, Nottingham and Plymouth Depots.
The process involves Nationally agreed data that informs the ‘Route Builder’ programme to produce a balanced route plan for each depot. However, as the agreement makes clear the data produced is the start point for local negotiations which should also factor in local knowledge, circumstances and human factors to ensure a robust route design. These talks will be conducted in line with the IR Framework and it’s reaching agreement principles.
It is important to note that this is a quick response approach which enables each individual depot to call for adjustments to the National data should they gain or lose sufficient amounts of traffic to destabilise their balanced route structure. Additional locally specific data would then be factored in and a new balanced route start point would be produced so that local negotiations could be concluded at pace and adjustments made to facilitate changing circumstances.
The department consider this ‘Proof of Concept’ type of approach as the best response to the current circumstances given the success of the trials and the fact that it maintains the spirit and intent of our current agreements.
Discussions will of course continue with the business in relation to this issue and you will be kept updated as to progress.
Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Terry Pullinger, Assistant Secretary, e-mail: dwyatt@cwu.org or shayman@cwu.org quoting reference number 132.05.
Yours sincerely
Terry Pullinger
Assistant Secretary
NATIONAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN PARCELFORCE WORLDWIDE AND THE CWU FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF DEPOT REVISIONS
INTRODUCTION
This agreement has been reached following a Joint Statement and commitment made in the 2012 pay agreement to review our depot revision processes. It ensures that depot revisions are fit for purpose in providing a transparent and fair revision process which organises balanced routes/duties with a fair and manageable workload. This agreement is considered a pragmatic response to the need for a ‘quick response process’ whilst maintaining our mutual interest values as detailed in our ‘Depot Blue Print’ and other recovery and growth agreements. Therefore this document should be considered as an annex to those agreements and not a replacement to them.
BACKDROP
Using the well-established “Table of Success” approach, lengthy discussions have identified the need for a new revisions process, which ensures that a depot’s duty design is always fit for purpose in regard to the commitments made to customers and employees. Both parties accept that there are sufficient grounds to update our existing revisions arrangements whilst maintaining their spirit and intent, made as part of the 2004 Blueprint Agreement.
KEY PRINCIPLES
The aim of this agreement is to produce a jointly designed, clearly understood and easily applied revisions process which will enable an audit adjustment approach on a regular basis. This process will replace the existing approach but not the philosophy contained within the Blueprint Agreement.
To ensure that the new revisions process is universally supported, easily understood, and responsive enough to cope with the pace of change the market is demanding, the following key principles will be applied:
➢ The source data for any Depot revision process is the ‘Paragon’ information data base. This information is owned by PFW and a joint review of this National information will take place annually and updated accordingly.
➢ The new revisions process replaces the current methodology for revisions as detailed in the Blueprint Agreement, to one based upon the peak week (excluding Christmas pressure, exams, other agreed anomalies and weekend deliveries) divided by 5, to give an average day and with an annually determined percentage for planned adjustments e.g. growth.
➢ The Paragon software will populate the agreed “Route-Builder” programme annually. This will be used locally by managers and unit representatives, who will be fully trained in the process and best positioned to apply local knowledge to ensure that the depot duty design meets our mutual interest objectives. It is important to note that the outputs from the ‘Route Builder’ programme are sterile and are a start point for negotiations and that local knowledge, circumstances and human factors should be taken into account to ensure a robust route design. These talks will be conducted in line with the IR Framework and its reaching agreement principles.
➢ The new process will ensure revisions will be implemented to at least maintain existing productivity levels and route clearance in a manner consistent with our mutual interest objectives
➢ The post-summer and pre-winter Peak periods will be used for analysis to determine the volume of deliveries for the following year. This will return the maximum benefit in operational & budget planning. To ensure that performance is measured in a mutual interest and genuine way it is understood that budgets will be set with tolerances that recognise matters such as differing utilisation, resourcing implications and traffic growth.
➢ Extra flexibility will be achieved through working collectively in line with the ‘Depot Blue Print’ principles of core duty structures doing what is necessary together to get the job done.
➢ An annual update, including appropriate deployment will provide a long term sustainable approach that ensures a seamless, progressive and corrective revision process, which anticipates change and maintains all mutual interest priorities. This will replace the existing principle and avoid unnecessary large scale disruption.
The above process clearly establishes “Route-builder” as the primary tool for C&D modelling. Non C&D staff modelling will continue to be revised in line with that detailed in the ‘Depot Blue Print’ Agreement for Admin and Warehouse models respectively and will be maintained by Parcelforce Worldwide and the CWU Industrial Engineer.
Parcelforce Worldwide are committed to train CWU HQ nominated Representatives on the “Route-builder” software package and the spirit and intent of its application. These individuals along with managerial expertise will then be available to jointly train and support Depot Managers and Representatives in deploying the revision process.
Because this approach represents a pragmatic proof of concept response to an exceptional era of growth and traffic fluctuation, it will be kept under review. Both parties accept that technology in this area is developing rapidly as a response to changing customer demands. Therefore it is incumbent upon us to continually seek improvement opportunities. The purpose of this agreement is to ensure that we have the ability to continue to improve and deploy revision requirements, whilst we work towards achieving a final revised approach that will utilise the best technology which potentially combines into an updated blue print type document in line with our Table of Success approach.
Any questions of interpretation, implementation or application of this agreement shall be referred to the signatories of this agreement as a matter of urgency and will be dealt with inside the provisions of the appropriate industrial relations framework.
Terry Pullinger Peter Fuller
Assistant Secretary Operations Director
CWUPFW
Date:8 July 2015
CWU Eastern No5 Branch 
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