Month: October 2019

Make Work Safer’ – A Free Training Event to Support Young Workers’ Mental Health, Mentoring and Health & Safety At Work – Manchester 25 November 2019

Make Work Safer’ – A Free Training Event to Support Young Workers’ Mental Health, Mentoring and Health & Safety At Work – Manchester 25 November 2019:

The Hazards Campaign are organising a free to attend training event which will hear from industry professionals and trade union and health and safety experts about supporting young people at work.

The event is supported by TUC Unionlearn, LOcHER (Learning Occupational Health by Experiencing Risks), Trade Union Education, Greater Manchester Hazards Centre, Unite in Schools.

Date and Time

Monday, 25 November 2019
10:00 – 15:00

Venue Location

Manchester College
Lecture Theatre
Openshaw Campus
Ashton Old Road
Openshaw
Manchester
M11 2WH

Agenda

The event will include sessions on:

  • Young Workers’ Mental Health
  • Ensuring the health, safety and welfare of apprentices and trainees
  • Mentoring apprentices and trainees
  • LOcHER and Unite in Schools

Panel

A panel of industry experts and health and safety professionals will share their knowledge and experience. There will be resource materials for attendees to take away and use in their own workplace and organisation and an opportunity to download and use a new ‘Training Safe App’.

Registration/Tickets

To book a place use the link to Eventbrite below or email/call Janet Newsham at GM Hazards  janet@gmhazards.org.uk Tel: 0161 636 7558

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/make-work-safer-a-free-training-event-about-young-workers-tickets-77328753383

Yours sincerely

 

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

19LTB617 Make Work Safer – A Free Training Event to Support Young Workers

 



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RMPFS – Pension Salary Exchange (PSE)

RMPFS – Pension Salary Exchange (PSE)

Further to LTB 607/19, please find attached a Question & Answer sheet which responds to questions raised about the introduction of Pension Salary Exchange for members of the Royal Mail Pension Plan working in RMPFS.

All enquiries regarding the content of this LTB should be addressed to the PTCS Department, quoting reference 301. Email address: khay@cwu.org and Outdoor Department quoting reference 120.12. Email address: outdoorsecretary@cwu.org. 

Yours sincerely,

Ray Ellis – Assistant Secretary

Mark Baulch – Assistant Secretary

19LTB616

QandA 2019

 

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Royal Mail/CWU Road Safety Campaign – “Taking The Time” – W/C Monday 4 November 2019

Royal Mail/CWU Road Safety Campaign – “Taking The Time” – W/C Monday 4 November 2019

Background and Context 

The importance and aim of the November business-wide Road Safety Campaign is to raise awareness amongst our members who are drivers about the importance of road safety and the importance of “Taking The Time” and not rushing when driving.

The campaign will concentrate on a central key message to drivers and managers “Time is a driver’s best friend” – When driving, drivers are constantly taking in information, road layout, traffic conditions, weather conditions, what the traffic is doing, what hazards are present, clues as to unseen hazards that might be present.  Time allows drivers to plan for what might happen, to react to situations that develop and to take avoiding action if something does occur.  It doesn’t take much time to do all of this, and it doesn’t save much time when drivers don’t! – Again the key message is – “Rushing isn’t worth it, so Take The Time!”

All Royal Mail drivers have a responsibility to drive safely and minimise risks to themselves, other road users and the public.  That should never be forgotten.

We genuinely want to make a difference. All drivers can make mistakes when driving but we can minimise risks, eliminate many potential errors and give us more chance to react in time if we are driving sensibly. Road conditions can be dangerous, especially in adverse weather but if we plan our journey, take our time and read the signs and signals well in advance, we can make that precious decision and not only keep ourselves safe but other road users too. We can all improve safety on the roads and our personal safety by being aware, prepared and responsible. Time is a gift and to get somewhere fast – we need to slow down – if we want to arrive safe and sound! “Drive Safe-Stay Safe”.

Key Pointers

Our strong advice is – “Don’t rush-Take your time” and make sure you continue to drive safely on your journey. Rushing makes you more likely to miss important parts of driving – Like your blind-spot check – and puts both the driver and others at risk. So “Take The Time” to:

  • Always drive at an appropriate speed – Which allows you to react if something unexpected should happen. Drive slower around pedestrians and children – they often do the unexpected.
  • Leave a gap behind the vehicle in front – Remember to leave a minimum 2 seconds (4 in wet weather) behind the vehicle in front to give you adequate thinking and reaction time.  In larger vehicles this time will increase.
  • Look carefully when pulling out at junctions – Judge the speed that other road users are travelling at. Check that there are no cyclists, motorcyclists or pedestrians that you didn’t see.
  • Check mirrors and blind spots before turning into a driveway or a side-road – Other people may not be patient and may try to overtake.
  • Change lane safely – Check mirrors and check your blind spots – indicate your intention to manoeuvre and only change lanes when you are satisfied the way is clear.
  • Overtake safely – Only overtake if it is safe and necessary to do so, don’t pass cyclists until you can leave a minimum gap of 1.5m. Wait for gaps in traffic before overtaking parked vehicles.
  • Park in a safe location – Walking an extra few seconds can keep you, your vehicle and other road users safe – never leave your vehicle exposed (sticking out or on a blind bend).  Always park in the same direction as traffic.
  • Reverse safely – Follow the “GOAL” synonymGet Out And Look if you aren’t sure what’s behind you.
  • Follow the HIT procedure for Handbrake Safety – Take an extra couple of seconds to ensure you put the “H” – Handbrake on, Put the vehicle “I” in gear and “T” turn the wheels. This will ensure the vehicle it will not roll away if the handbrake fails to hold the vehicle for whatever reason.
  • Check your vehicle – Always complete the pre-use walk-around/vehicle checks, which provides confidence that the vehicle is in good, safe condition and ready for the journey.
  • Give way to other drivers – Even if you feel you have “right of way” – there’s no glory in being right but having a collision and spending time injured and completing an RTC and Police investigation.

Dangers and Top Accident Causes While Driving – Speed, Carelessness and Distractions

Road safety experts, road safety organisations and charities (e.g., Think, Roadpeace, Brake, RoSPA, RAC, AA, AIRSO, FTA, Police etc.,) say that rushing, speeding, driver distractions and carelessness are top causes of road accidents so drivers should take their time!

Unfortunately, lots of drivers do ignore speed limit signs when rushing to their destination – putting themselves and others in danger. The faster you drive, the shorter reaction time you have to prevent an accident.

After decades of awareness campaigns, driving too fast for either the road or the driving conditions is still one of the most common contributory factors in collisions. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA) states that speeding kills 500 people a year in the UK so wherever you’re heading, it’s always safer to stay within the speed limits and don’t rush.

Careful driving isn’t just about managing your speed but also about being considerate to other road users. Changing lanes too quickly and erratically on a motorway or dual carriageway can cause other drivers to brake suddenly, possibly resulting in a crash with a vehicle behind them.

Driving too closely to the vehicle in front of you, also known as tailgating, is also very dangerous. If it suddenly brakes, there’ll be little time for you to react and this could result in a serious crash.

Driver distractions – Don’t get distracted by your phone or food. Since 1 March 2017, holding and using a phone while driving could result in a £200 fine and 6 points added to your driver’s licence. For no good reason – text driving is twice as likely to cause a crash as drink driving, due to a driver’s reaction times. Driving while using a phone impairs your driving in many ways:

  • DistractionDriving and using your phone means doing two ‘thinking’ tasks, which our brains are not designed to do well.
  • PhysicalUsing a phone means having only one hand to control the car.
  • VisualEven a quick glance at your phone takes your eyes off the road for a second or two – which could be the difference between a safe stop and an accident.

Be sure to turn the phone off when on the road. If you need to use it, stop somewhere safe to do so and stay safe – stay within the law. Royal Mail Group policy prohibits the use of mobile phones, PDAs or any other device including hands free that may cause distraction whilst driving on behalf of Royal Mail Group (Royal Mail, Parcelforce, RMSS, RMP&FS, RME, RM Fleet, etc.,) and by doing so is a breach of business standards.

Although no specific law makes it illegal to eat and drive, doing so could present a significant danger. And despite the law, you can still be prosecuted for careless driving if not in proper control of the vehicle.

CWU Area Health & Safety Reps Involvement

CWU ASRs are to be fully involved and consulted on joint Road Safety Week activities and attached is an ASR Road Safety Campaign task/activity guide to follow. This includes carrying out visits to units, safety inspections and speaking to drivers. ASR full support is very much appreciated by Royal Mail Group and the CWU.

ASRs are asked to agree with Operational Managers, which units they plan to visit and jointly support during this Road Safety Campaign, and:

  • Assist the front-line Manager in delivering the WTLL (which will be published on Friday 1 November).
  • Carry out additional activities to increase awareness.
  • Remind drivers to carry out preparations, pre-use vehicle checks before they set out on their journeys.

Engage Drivers and Check that they have:-

  • Received the WTLL briefing on Road Safety Week (which will be published on Friday 1 November).
  • Seen the leaflets and seat drop (copies attached).

And that they:-

  • Stick to speed limits and don’t rush – Take Their Time whilst driving.
  • Drive carefully and don’t be distracted – put the phone away before starting their journey.
  • FINALY – REMIND DRIVERS THAT EVEN A MOMENT’S DISTRACTION CAN CAUSE AN ACCIDENT WITH DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES. 

Ask Front Line Managers:

  • What activities have they completed for the Road Safety Campaign?
  • Have they made all drivers aware of the actions they need to take?

Thanks for your support and assistance.

Yours sincerely

 

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

19LTB615 Royal Mail CWU Road Safety Campaign – Taking The Time – WC Monday 4 November 2019

Take The Time – one-pager for logistics drivers – November 2019 – FINAL

Take The Time ASR – FINAL

Take the Time Seat Drop – FINAL

Take the Time tips leaflet – FINAL



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Scottish Hazards Conference 2019 – ‘Tackling Toxic Workplaces’ – Glasgow, 7 November 2019

Scottish Hazards Conference 2019 – ‘Tackling Toxic Workplaces’ – Glasgow, 7 November 2019:

This year’s Scottish Hazards Conference will be held on Thursday 7 November, in partnership with the Trade Union Education Centre at City of Glasgow College, and supported by the STUC. This year’s theme will be ‘Tackling Toxic Workplaces!’

Event Agenda:

The event is aimed primarily at Trade Union Health and Safety Reps. The agenda will once again be packed with informative content to help Trade Union Health and Safety Reps in the workplace, including:

  • MSP’s from across the political spectrum discussing the potential for devolution of health and safety;
  • Professor Andy Watterson setting out how a toxics use reduction strategy could benefit, and be implemented, in Scotland;
  • Input on St Ambrose and Buchanan High Schools, glyphosate and welding fumes;
  • An overview of campaigns aimed at tackling violence and aggression in the workplace; and

A choice of workshops including: air pollution; ill health/capability dismissals; and toxic work environments.

Date and Location:

  • Thursday 7 November 2019
  • City of Glasgow College Riverside Campus, G5 9XB

Fees: 

£55 waged and £10 unwaged.

Event Application Form and Flyer

This is attached – to book a place please complete and return the form as instructed as soon as possible.

Further Information:

Kathy Jenkins, Secretary, Scottish Hazards, 113 Kingsknowe Road North, Edinburgh, EH14 2DQ
Email: secretary@scottishhazards.org
Tel: 0131 477 0817
Mobile: 07988850230  

Or: 

Scott Donohoe, Chair, Scottish Hazards,
Email: s.donohoe@glasgowcityunison.co.uk
Tel: 0141 552 7069

Yours sincerely

 

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

19LTB613 Scottish Hazards Conference 2019 – ‘Tackling Toxic Workplaces’ – Glasgow, 7 November 2019

Tackling Toxic Workplaces -Scot Hazards Conference-flyer-2019

 



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Residential Education & Training Programme: January 2020 – July 2020

Residential Education & Training Programme: January 2020 – July 2020

Listed below is the CWU residential education and training programme for January 2020 – July 2020 which will assist branches in making necessary arrangements for students.    

Applications for reps must be made in the normal way.

Successful applicants will not receive any paperwork until after the closing date for applications:

 

January
30 Dec – 3 Bank Holiday
6 – 10 Essential Skills Part 1
13 – 17 Employment Law Week 3
13 – 17 Occupational Health & Safety Week 3
20 – 24 Postal Agreements & Procedures
27 – 31 Advanced Skills Part 2
February
3 – 7 Introduction to Health & Safety Part 2
10 – 14 Intermediate Health & Safety Part 2
17 – 21 Essential Skills Part 2
24 – 26 Public Speaking
26 – 28 Black Members Leadership 1
March
2 – 6 Essential Skills Part 1
9 – 13 Equal Rights Part 2
9 – 13 Union Learning Reps Part 2
16 – 20 Advanced Skills Part 1
23 – 27 Employment Law Week 4
23 – 27 Occupational Health & Safety Week 4
April
30 March – 3 Essential Skills Part 2
6 – 10 Bank Holiday    
15 – 17 Bank Holiday (Monday)   Mental Health Awareness
20 – 24 Introduction To Health & Safety Part 1
27 April – 1 Essential Skills Part 1
May
6 – 7 Bank Holiday   Mandatory Fair & Equal In The CWU
11 – 15 Postal Agreements & Procedures
18 – 22 Advanced Skills Part 2
27 – 29 Bank Holiday   Chairing Meetings
27 – 29 Bank Holiday   Branch Secretaries Module 2
June
1 – 5 Intermediate Health & Safety Part 1
8 – 10 Women’s Leadership
10 – 12 Black Members Leadership 2
15 – 19 Essential Skills Part 2
22 – 26 Intermediate Health & Safety Part 2
July
29 June – 3 Introduction to Health & Safety Part 2
6 – 10 Postal Agreements & Procedures
13 – 17 Essential Skills Part 2
20 – 24 Intermediate Health & Safety Part 2
27 – 31 Introduction To Health & Safety Part 2

 

The above courses are scheduled to be held at Alvescot Lodge and may be subject to change with adequate notice

Branches are reminded that additional support can be given where students encounter learning differences. For example, if individuals are dyslexic, additional resources, formats and aids are available.

Any enquiries on the above LTB should be addressed to lwakeman@cwu.org in the first instance.

Yours sincerely,

 

Kate Hudson
Head of Equality, Education & Development

19LTB 611 – Residential Education & Training Programme – January 2020 – July 2020

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Behind Royal Mail’s Attack on Workers #WeRiseAgain

This article is critical for us. It exposes to the public exactly what we are facing with the a Royal Mail Board.

Please make sure you do everything possible to share it, tag your friends and family and make sure your customers know about it.

https://tribunemag.co.uk/2019/10/behind-royal-mails-attack-on-workers

#WeRiseAgain

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Postal workers have just voted to strike. According to the workers, all they feared when the formerly nationalised mail delivery service was privatised in 2013 …….

Postal workers have just voted to strike. According to the workers, all they feared when the formerly nationalised mail delivery service was privatised in 2013 is now coming to a head: Royal Mail is being broken up, Parcelforce hived off, jobs are being cut, promises over shorter hours are being binned and management bullying in the depots, they say, is intensifying. The CWU argues that underlying all this is a company board which has become overpaid and irresponsible, and whose only response to challenge is to squeeze what they can out of Royal Mail’s staff. They say this is the “fight of their lives.” But who are they fighting?

In 2009, a political scandal shook the UK. Leaked records showed many MPs secretly abused their expenses to enrich themselves and pay for luxuries. Across the country, the MP expenses scandal hugely undermined Parliament’s reputation. One of the most eye-catching of the shocking stories showed a former Conservative Cabinet minister including claiming the cost of having the moat cleared at his country manor house. This MP, Douglas Hogg, was the first to stand down from Parliament because of the scandal.

But Douglas Hogg was not the only top Tory enjoying the publicly funded moat — or the maintenance of the family’s Aga cooker or the £18,000 annual gardening costs or payments for the “mole man” and other expenses. Hogg shared the Lincolnshire Manor House with his wife, Baroness Sarah Hogg. According to reports of Douglas Hogg’s correspondence with the Parliamentary Fees Office, Hogg said his expenses claim was high because he had to pay for staff to maintain the Lincolnshire manor house when he and his wife were away in their London townhouse.

Like her husband, Sarah Hogg had deep connections to the Tory Party: she had been the head of Tory Prime Minister John Major’s Policy Unit in the 1990s. Sarah Hogg was credited with a key role in writing the 1992 Tory manifesto, with its pledge to privatise rail. Hogg renewed her Tory connections when George Osborne made her a director of the Treasury from 2016-7, supporting his austerity programme. Expenses scandal, John Major’s policies, rail privatisation, Osborne’s austerity — you might think Baroness Hogg’s record is all that is wrong with Britain’s political elite. But not Royal Mail Group, who in May 2019 made 73-year-old Hogg their Senior Independent Director. Hogg is one of the six “non-executive,” or part-time, directors on the Royal Mail Group’s eight-person board.

But the most significant board member is Rico Back, Royal Mail CEO, recruited to the board from one of the company’s European subsidiaries in 2018. Since then Back has stumbled from scandal to scandal. In 2018 shareholders revolted against Royal Mail’s pay plans: 70% of shareholders refused to support the company’s pay report, including Back’s own £5.8 million ‘golden hello’ and annual deal worth up to £2.7 million. It was the largest such revolt at a UK public company in at least a decade.

Even the City was shocked at the scale of Back’s pay packet, especially given his recruitment from one of the company’s own subsidiaries. But that wasn’t to be the end of the scandals. In 2018 we learned that Back intended to run Royal Mail from his £2.3 million luxury penthouse overlooking Lake Zurich in Switzerland. Back would travel 500 miles every week from his Swiss compound, frequented by Porsches and Bentleys, to wage a battle against the CWU, whose members earned an average of £28,274 per year.

The union said Back’s appointment was evidence of Royal Mail’s intended direction. It goes back to Royal Mail’s decision to buy the private Dutch courier firm founded by Back, which became Euro-delivery company General Logistics Systems (GLS). When Royal Mail promoted Back, they said he still had special “management control rights” at GLS, which he’d been given to make the subsidiary more “entrepreneurial”. That was the justification for the £6 million golden hello. In GLS’ case, more entrepreneurialism meant sky-high corporate pay mixed with allegations of 14-hour days for workers, bogus self-employment and earning as little as €3 per hour.

In fact, GLS’s record shows what “entrepreneurial” mail delivery services tend to look like. In September 2016, workers throughout northern Italy went on strike against GLS and its subsidiaries and subcontractors, protesting against low pay, poor conditions, subcontracting and precarious work. The dispute got so bad that one worker was even killed by a truck on the picket lines in Piacenza, leading to big protests. Conditions at GLS in Italy are still sparking protests. This April workers occupied the roof at one GLS depot for two weeks, in protest at sackings. The fact that these are the business practices Royal Mail sought to import with the appointment of Rico Back goes some way to explaining the current standoff.

And Back isn’t alone. Michael Findlay, another board member appointed after Rico Back became boss, also has experience running a gig economy mail firm. Findlay had a long banking career, but Royal Mail’s website emphasises his role for seven years as a director of UK Mail, one of the bigger private courier companies. Findlay helped organise the sale of UK Mail to Germany’s Deutsche Post for £243 million in 2016, with £130m going to the founding Kane family — whose leading figure Peter Kane is a major Tory donor, giving the Party some £550,000 and regularly dining with Conservative ministers.

UK Mail made its millions by squeezing their supposedly self-employed staff. Its practices included hefty fines when couriers were off sick. In one particularly notorious incident, a workers was fine nearly £800 after suffering a car accident while on duty. This was on top of the £1,800 he had lost from taking just seven sick days in a year. It was business practices like these which produced the £16 million in profit UK Mail made the year it was bought out by Deutsche Post.

Royal Mail’s recent appointments make clear that the company is heading in a very different direction from its recent publicly-owned past — and towards headlong collision with its unions. As if all the above didn’t make that clear enough, the appointments of British Airways veterans Keith Williams and Maya da Cunha hammer it home. Williams has held various top BA jobs, including Chief Executive, and became board chair this May, the same month that former BA Director of People and Legal da Cunha was appointed to the board.

The Royal Mail were quick to praise da Cunha’s “extensive dealings with trade unions” and experience in “transformation” and “employee engagement” while at BA. It didn’t mention that much of this experience had come during one of the most long-standing and bitter industrial disputes in recent history, between BA and their cabin crew. Both Williams and da Cunha were involved in that bitter fight as the airline tried to cut costs. Their new company is heading in very much the same direction.

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