CWU/RMG AGREEMENT: HOW WILL IT HELP YOU?

Dear Member,

As you will be aware, we will shortly be balloting you on the new CWU/RMG agreement, which includes resolutions to our Dispute Resolution Processes on changes to the USO (Universal Service Obligation) and on equalisation of new entrants’ pay and conditions.

USO CHANGES: WHAT IS THE NEW MODEL?

Due to changes to the USO approved by Ofcom last year, we need to change the way we deliver post.

Royal Mail initially wanted to use these USO changes to bring in a new delivery model, the Optimised Delivery Model or ODM. We piloted this model in 35 offices across the UK but it resulted in unrealistic workloads, displaced posties from their walks and did not meet the agreed service quality criteria.

This was not acceptable. There is already serious pressure on posties, and we could not accept Royal Mail’s preferred new delivery model making this even worse and exacerbating service quality issues.

That is why the union has negotiated a new model for implementing USO change, called DM26.

This new model takes advantage of the reduced delivery requirements in the new USO regulations and requires less daily delivery of products on revised duties- reducing the number of delivery points and overall workload, compared to the current USO and the ODM.

Here’s why this model is different from ODM.

DM26 will:

• Create a fairer distribution of workload, with 20% of routes being switched to reduced call rates and creating additional capacity to support the ‘4 into 3’ structure. As a result, all other routes will have a fairer balance of workload.
• Allow posties to stay on familiar routes
• Add 3.5k walks into the service
• Move 6k part-timers to full time

The company has also committed to no compulsory redundancies from USO reform.

You can find out more about the DM26 model, and other important aspects of the deal, by visiting our agreement FAQ page here.

The CWU believes this new model is the best opportunity to create more manageable workloads and improve service quality.

However, we know that any plan needs safeguards. That is why we made sure that no office will deploy this unless they are fully resourced. No surplus staff will be addressed until your unit is hitting all service quality targets. If this is not being achieved, Royal Mail have committed to putting additional capacity back into the unit.

We have also ensured that workplaces have flexibility to undertake local decision making to ensure any changes work for them.

The CWU firmly believes the new model, and the safeguards we have negotiated, will provide more manageable workloads and bring stability and local decision making back to workplaces. It is the best opportunity to move us to the other side of USO reform while protecting jobs and ensuring service quality improves.

Let’s get this agreed and get Royal Mail back on track.

Keep an eye out for your ballot materials, which should arrive shortly. The materials posted to you will contain your link to vote online.

Vote YES. Vote early.

If you have any other questions, please email info@cwu.org.

In solidarity,

Martin Walsh – Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

Dave Ward – General Secretary

Tony Bouch – Assistant Secretary

Davie Robertson – Assistant Secretary

Andy Furey – Assistant Secretary

TUC CONGRESS  13^th – 16^th September 2025, Brighton
LABOUR PARTY CONFERENCE 27^th September – 30^th September 2026, Liverpool
LABOUR PARTY WOMEN’S CONFERENCE 26^thSeptember 2026, Liverpool

CWU NATIONAL DELEGATIONS 2026

TUC CONGRESS  13^th – 16^th September 2025, Brighton
LABOUR PARTY CONFERENCE 27^th September – 30^th September 2026, Liverpool
LABOUR PARTY WOMEN’S CONFERENCE 26^thSeptember 2026, Liverpool

The NEC has agreed the 2026 election arrangements for the National Delegations listed above.   Accordingly, please find attached the Election Regulations, Nomination Forms, Candidates Consent & Biographical Detail form and Labour Party Delegate Application form for these elections.

LABOUR PARTY CONFERENCE 2026

Please note that for the 2026 Conference the Labour Party have advised that to be eligible to be a delegate at this particular conference, nominees/applicants will need to have 6 month’s continuous membership as at 26^th December 2025

Accordingly, all nominees who joined the Labour Party after the 31^st December 2025 will not be eligible to be a delegate at the 2026 conference.

Additionally, would branches please note that all nominees/candidates for the Labour Party delegation

Must complete sections B,C,D,E,F and H of the attached Labour Party Annual Conference Delegate Application Form, and this must be attached to the candidate consent form which must be returned to CWU HQ by the closing date for CWU nominations which is 15^th May 2026 (14.00)

The timetable for the election is:

Nominations open:       1^st May 2026

Nominations close:       15^th May 2026 (14.00)

Despatch ballot papers: 22^nd May 2026

Ballot closes:                12^th June 2026 (14.00)

Any enquiries regarding this Letter to Branches should be addressed by email to lparrett@cwu.org

Yours sincerely,

Dave Ward
General Secretary

LTB 127/26 – CWU National Delegations 2026 – TUC Congress-Labour Party Conference-Labour Party Women’s Conference

Attachment 1 – AC26 Affiliate Delegate application form

Attachment 2 – LP-Candidates-Biographical-Detail-and-Consent-Form

Attachment 3 – LP-Nomination-Forms-2026

Attachment 4 – Regulations

Attachment 5 – TUC-Candidate-Biographical-Detail-Consent-Form

Attachment 6 – TUC-Nomination-Forms-2026

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RM and CWU Joint Statement Covering Scanning Away from Location on Collection

Dear Colleagues,

Following trials in the Anglia division for enhanced PDA features using location information to prompt users to sense check the scan location when on collection, we have agreed a joint communication with Royal Mail covering this process, as the business seek to reduce scanning in the wrong location.

The enhanced feature issues a notification to the user when they attempt to scan a COLLOD or collection point barcode whilst the PDA location is away from the registered location by more than 100 meters. The notification says ‘You are scanning in the wrong location, do you want to proceed?’ giving the user an option to select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.

It is recognised that there might be differing reasons for the notification appearing, for example GPS issues or the collection point being recorded incorrectly in Route Manager, which should be corrected as this is highlighted. It is also recognised that this could occur as a result of staff knowingly scanning away from the location i.e. from a photo of the barcode on their mobile phone. CWU and the business are aware that this is not solely proportioned to OPG grade.

We trialled this update in Norwich DO and the Collections Hub at Norwich MC with an agreed amnesty on conduct. There were no issues during the trial from management or CWU representatives and any base data anomalies were corrected as a result of the trial.

The trial was then expanded to the wider Anglia division and due to increased visibility, we have received reports from management regarding staff scanning away from location, which could have resulted in conduct without the amnesty in place.

The joint aim is to see improved quality as a result of the new feature. Protection of a further National amnesty period for additional 3 months will be in place to reduce the potential for conduct cases going forward, with the focus being on coaching rather than conduct. This is captured in the joint statement and Royal Mail are now looking to deploy this upgrade nationally on Monday, 11^th May.

In addition, the business has agreed that all required training and coaching will be given by Workplace Coaches to support OPGs as required, with all data on the deployment of Collection Proximity feature to be regularly shared with the National Collections JWG.

Any enquiries to the content of this LTB should be directed to the Outdoor Department, email address: Pharacz@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely,

Tony Bouch

Assistant Secretary

LTB 125/26 – JS Scanning Away from Location on Collection

Scanning away from Location agreement

Collection Proximity WTLL final v2

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BALLOT TIMETABLE FOR THE RESOLUTION OF THE TWO DRPS ON USO AND EQUALISATION

We are pleased to announce the timetable for the consultative ballot on the resolution of USO and the equalisation of new entrants’ pay, terms and conditions.

• Ballot papers will be dispatched on 11^th May 2026.
• The ballot will close on 29^th May 2026.
• The ballot result will be announced at 17:00 on 29^th May 2026.

Those eligible to vote on the agreement will be all members who work in UK operations.

There will be an additional vote for new entrant members to vote on the first step.

Any enquiries relating to the content of this LTB should be referred to the DGSP department hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Walsh

Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

LTB 124/26 BALLOT TIMETABLE FOR THE RESOLUTION OF THE TWO DRPS ON USO AND EQUALISATION

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CWU/RMG AGREEMENT – FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS 

As you are aware, the union has been undertaking a series of briefings across the UK to explain the agreement reached with Royal Mail to our Local, Area & Branch Representatives. 

A key part of these briefings has been a detailed session on the USO element of the agreement – explaining why the new model is different and better than ODM, the extensive safeguards that have been negotiated, as well as what it means to our members’ daily workload.

To further support the explanations that were given during the briefings, please find attached a document that provides answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs). This document should also be seen as a Representatives brief when discussing some of the key points, particularly on the USO, with our local members.

These FAQs are being uploaded to our website today to support our members’ understanding of the agreement and to answer their frequently asked questions. You can find them on the website here.   

Next week, the union will be sending out further communications to our members and representatives on all elements of the agreement. 

Finally, we will be announcing the ballot timetable on Monday.

Any enquiries regarding this LTB should be addressed to the Postal Department, Hayley Ford on hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Walsh                                 

Deputy General Secretary (Postal)                                                                      

Dave Ward

General Secretary  

Tony Bouch              

Assistant Secretary                               

Davie Robertson                

Assistant Secretary                       

Andy Furey

Assistant Secretary                     

LTB 123/26 – CWU RMG AGREEMENT FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS

Attachment: FAQ RM BALLOT 26

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ROYAL MAIL STATUTORY PENSION SCHEME (RMSPS): GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCEMENT – CAPITA

Branches and Representatives may be aware from the publicity late yesterday that Nick Thomas-Symonds, the Government’s Paymaster General and Cabinet Office Minister, announced to Parliament that he was terminating the recent extended contract with Capita for “failure to meet critical transition milestones” and a “lack of confidence” in Capita’s ability to move to a new operating model.  To avoid any confusion as to who this impacts, the RMSPS is managed by the Cabinet Office, but administered on their behalf by Capita since 2018.  The RMSPS was introduced at the point of the privatisation of Royal Mail and has been in operation since 1^st April 2012.

The Minister stated “Capita had an 18 month transition [period]. They failed to deliver on numerous milestones, including a failure to implement required IT automation. Furthermore, the Minister said “To ensure members are protected, we will ensure continuity of the existing contract, but let the message be clear: We will not tolerate delivery failure from contracted partners.”  

As members of the RMSPS Governance Group, myself and Steve Halliwell, Postal Executive member, were notified of the Government’s decision also late yesterday afternoon in a letter from Simon Claydon, Director of Civil Service Pay, Policy & Pensions.  The letter states “The Cabinet Office is writing to formally advise the Board of the decision to terminate the new RMSPS administration contract with Capita”.  Simon Claydon stated “Since the transition programme commenced in September 2024, the provider was required to deliver 10 specific milestones.  To date, only four have been delivered, and all of those were significantly past their due date” He also said “Service delivery failure from contracted partners cannot be tolerated”.  

Crucially, Simon Claydon confirmed “As the existing service is currently operating without issues, members are not expected to be detrimentally impacted by this decision.”  He went on to say “The Cabinet Office will now carry out a comprehensive assessment to identify the optimal delivery model for this service”.  

Firstly, I consider this development to be significant, bearing in mind the contract to administer the RMSPS was originally awarded to Capita by the Conservative Government and Capita have administered the scheme since October 2018.  Recently, the Labour Government extended the contract, but in doing so, insisted on Capita delivering significant improvements to its service, including automation.  At the time of the Conservative Government’s decision, we were very critical of the decision to move the work from Royal Mail Group, as we felt that the service provided by our members in the Pension Service Centre in Sheffield was excellent and we had severe reservations that this would be matched by Capita.

The actions of the current Labour Government to terminate the new contract should be applauded, as this is a positive and brave decision.  That said, our concern now turns to what the future holds and what the long-term arrangements will be for the administration of the RMSPS.  In this regard, we intend to discuss this development with Royal Mail to ascertain what their views are in regard to bringing the work back in-house as the scheme was originally managed by Royal Mail from 2012 to 2018, prior to Capita being awarded the contract.

The Governance Group (which Simon Claydon refers to as “The Board”) is due to meet next Thursday, and this will afford Steve Halliwell and myself the opportunity to pose questions about the Cabinet Office’s assessment for future service provision.

The Postal Executive is meeting on Tuesday 28^th April, and will carefully consider this matter, and determine our policies for next steps.

Further developments will be reported.

If you have any queries in relation to this LTB, please contact Samantha Nicholas at snicholas@cwu.org  or Heidi Maughan at hmaughan@cwu.org

Yours sincerely,

Andy Furey 

Assistant Secretary 

LTB 122/26 – RM Statutory Pension Scheme (RMSPS) Government Announcement – Capita

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Joint Statement between Royal Mail and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 National Mail Centre Realignment Revisions 

Branches and Representatives are informed that discussions have been taking place with the business in relation to progressing arrangements for the 2026 National Mail Centre Realignment Revision activity 2025.

Attached for the information of Branches and Representatives is the Joint Statement covering this activity along with the detailed processes at Annexes A – F. As in previous years realignment activity will seek to ensure proper alignment of resource to workload and workplan compliance while creating attractive duty patterns for our members.

The document covers the ability to utilise inventive duty patterns, to assist the ability to achieve revision outcomes, which better match the aspirations of our members. Whilst continuing the current activity on reducing agency usage within the Mail Centres.

A Joint online launch event will take place with Plant Managers and Divisional/Area Representatives on Wednesday 29^th April 13:30-14:30.

As in previous years the department believes that the agreed process supported by all relevant national agreements including the IR Framework and MTSF will enable Representatives to achieve the best possible outcome in the realignment activity.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: jrodrigues@cwu.org  or jmansell@cwu.org  quoting reference LTB 121/26.

Yours sincerely,

Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary

LTB 121/26 – Joint Statement between Royal Mail and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 National Mail Centre Realignment Revisions

Joint Statement 2026 Resource Realignment Process in Mail Centres

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Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 PAD Revision Activity

Branches and representatives are informed discussions have been taking place with the business in relation to progressing arrangements for the 2026 PAD Revision activity.

Building on the processes developed in previous reviews, all aspects of the process will mirror previously agreed arrangements. Attached for information is a Joint Statement covering the details along with the agreed process for the deployment of this year’s review, which has been endorsed by the Postal Executive.

As was agreed in 2025, the inclusion of container tracking data as part of the revision activity will remain, this will be reviewed as part of the joint working group activity prior to any data being shared with the sites.

As with the previous PAD Revision Activity, the process fully recognises the role of the CWU at all levels and all activity will be overseen by the Area Distribution Working Group.

A Joint online launch event will take place with Distribution Managers and Divisional/Area Representatives on Wednesday 29^th April 11:45-12:45.

Colleagues will note that the Stage 1 Data Gathering will commence on Thursday 30^th April 2026 and representatives are therefore requested to engage with management accordingly in relation to the activity and release arrangements. 

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: jrodrigues@cwu.org  or jmansell@cwu.org  quoting reference LTB 120/26.

Yours sincerely,

Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary

LTB 120/26 – Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 PAD Revision Activity

Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 PAD Revision Activity

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International Workers’ Memorial Day 2026 

Remember the Dead. Fight for the Living — Addressing Psychosocial Hazards at Work

Dear Colleagues,

On International Workers’ Memorial Day, 28 April 2026, workers and trade unions around the world will come together to remember those who have died, been injured, or made ill because of work — and to demand action to prevent further harm.

International Workers’ Memorial Day (IWMD) commemorates those workers. We are calling upon CWU Branches, Regions, Safety Forums, Reps and members to please support your local IWMD events and come together to remember those who have lost their lives to work, been injured or disabled and to further renew our trade union commitment to fight for the safety and health of the living and make workplaces and working methods safer.

Psychosocial hazards—including work‑related stress, excessive workloads, long and unpredictable hours, job insecurity, bullying, harassment, workplace violence, and the misuse of technology and surveillance are among the leading causes of work‑related ill health worldwide.

The continued importance of International Workers’ Memorial Day is captured in this TUC timeline.

Workers Memorial Day: a timeline | TUC which details some of the events in British labour history where employer and government failures led to the preventable deaths of workers. It also includes dates which mark when trade unions won key legislative change to protect rights to safety at work.

List of IWMD Local Events

Workers’ Memorial Day – 2026 | Megaphone UK

The TUC and Scottish TUC have published the details of a list of many local events across England, Scotland, and Wales which are taking place from 24^th April right through to 2^nd May 2026, the above link has details of these events.

TUC Cymru have also organised a Wales’ National Workers’ Memorial Day event.

Here is the link to register for the event

TUC CYMRU – Workers Memorial Day 2026 Registration Form

TUC CYMRU – Workers’ Memorial Day 2026 event details:

Date: Tuesday, 28 April 2026

Time: 10:00 – 12:00

Venue: Unite Building, 1 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9SD

Food and hot drinks will be available from 10:00, with the ceremony beginning at 10:30. Smart, dark clothing is requested.

Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) WMD Event

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) normally mark International Workers’ Memorial Day with a wreath laying ceremony at the IWMD Commemorative Tree in the grounds of the Parliament Buildings Stormont Estate, Stormont Ct, Belfast BT4 3LP. For further event details email: info@ictuni.net 

Many more events will take place on International Workers’ Memorial Day 2026 which may not be officially listed. We therefore advise that enquiries should be made with local Trades Councils and other Trade Unions, Local Authorities, Hazards, and other campaign organisations for details of local IWMD events that Branches and Reps may further wish to support.

CWU 2026 International Workers’ Memorial Day Poster

A CWU Workplace poster is attached to this LTB, which draws attention to this year’s theme of: Addressing Psychosocial Hazards at Work. Also attached is a statement from Dave Ward, General Secretary, for International Workers’ Memorial Day 2026.

‘Light up Purple’ CWU campaign for IWMD

The ‘Light Up Purple’ campaign continues to grow in the name of the CWU since 2022. We invite and encourage any CWU members or IWMD activists to continue to ask for local landmarks, buildings, bridges, town halls to ‘light up for IWMD’ to remember the estimated 2.7 million workers who die globally each year because of occupational accidents or work-related diseases.

A few of the many landmarks, buildings, bridges that will be lighting up purple on the 28^{th of} April 2026 are listed via the link below, which also includes an updated link to the latest ‘Light up Purple’ Sway webpages: CWU LIGHT UP PURPLE CAMPAIGN 2026 | Megaphone UK

If you are interested in more information on the Global IWMD events campaigns and further guides and news items, you can visit the 28April.org website which contains details of the hugely valuable work undertaken by Hazards magazine and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).

28 April | Remember the dead, fight like hell for the living

This LTB is shared on behalf of CWU Central Services.

If you have any questions or need any further information, please contact:

Jamie McGovern FRSPH MIIAI 

CWU Health & Safety Policy Assistant at jmcgovern@cwu.org

LTB 119/26 IWMD 

Att: 08650 – Workers Memorial Day 2026 – A3

Att: Dave Ward CWU statement words for IWMD 2026

Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 National Network (Linehaul) Review

Branches and representatives are informed discussions have been taking place with the business in relation to progressing arrangements for the 2026 Network (Linehaul) Review activity.

Building on the processes developed in previous reviews, all aspects of the process will mirror previously agreed arrangements. Attached for information is a Joint Statement covering the details along with the agreed process for the deployment of this year’s review, which has been endorsed by the Postal Executive.

As with the previous Network Review Joint Statements, the process fully recognises the role of the CWU at all levels and all activity will be overseen by the Network Working Group.

A Joint online launch event will take place with National Network Managers and Divisional/Area Representatives on Wednesday 29^thApril 10:30-11:30.

Colleagues will note that the Stage 1 Data Gathering will commence on Thursday 30^th April 2026 and representatives are therefore requested to engage with management accordingly in relation to the activity and release arrangements. 

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: jrodrigues@cwu.org  or jmansell@cwu.org  quoting reference LTB 118/26.

Yours sincerely,

Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary

LTB 118/26 – Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 National Network -Linehaul- Review

Joint Statement between RM National Distribution and the CWU on the Deployment of the 2026 National Network (Linehaul) Review

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