RMG Disputes – Claims for Unlawful Deductions from Pay & Trade Union Detriments

Further to LTB 448/22 dated 11^thNovember 2022, the Union are aware that the number of individual claims being submitted by members who believe they have been suffering a detriment due to either supporting industrial action or because of their Union membership are increasing and gathering traction across the UK

 A fact that will not be lost on representatives and members is the reference made as a condition of the union agreeing to Royal Mail’s counter proposal (surrender document) to the union withdrawing its support from our members who have submitted claims.

It is apparent that the company including this as a prerequisite to their proposal, view these claims as a serious risk to the IR reputation and illustrates that RMG have concerns they have possibly acted outside of the legal protections enshrined in both employment and other legislation and exposed the company to a significant level of risk.

The condition they wanted the union to support ignores the fact the Union has no authority to make a collective agreement which overrides individual Employment Tribunal claims, an action that would also expose the union to legal action by its members.

Branches will note that the non-exhaustive list for complaints of trade union detriment due to Industrial Action or Executive Action is as follows:

1. Members being instructed to attend sick absence interviews on strike days and at locations where they would be expected to cross a picket line with the threat of stoppage of sick pay in the event of not attending. Other stoppages of sick pay.
2. Denying members overtime opportunities in preference for agency and other workers; this may also impact upon whether a member meets the regularity threshold for holiday pay.
3. The removal of innovative duty patterns.
4. Suspending CWU Representatives for various allegations.
5. Changing duty start times and/or scheduled attendances at short notice;
6. Deducting pay before strike action has taken place.
7. Offering incentives that are only available to individuals who work during strike days.

It is therefore of the utmost importance that Branches/representatives ensure our members are made fully aware of the support and information the Union are providing to our colleagues who believe they have been treated in an unfair and or discriminatory way by their employer/local/workplace manager.

Judging by reports being received, it is quite possible that several thousand(s) have been potentially subject to detriments for lawfully supporting their Union, being a Union member and for taking part in lawful official industrial action and as a result entitled to receive restoration and possibly compensation for the detriment they have incurred.

In conjuction with Tony Rupa, Head of Legal Services, we have established a co-ordinated process that has been endorsed by the Postal Executive which will ensure a consistent approach and that support is provided to Branches and members who submit claims.

Coordinating roles will be undertaken by Rob Wotherspoon, Saf Khan and Luke Elgar from the Postal Executive, which will also involve Postal Branches and Senior Field Officials.  The group each Postal Executive member is covering is attached to this LTB.  Dialogue is also continuing with the Communications Department with a view to the wider circulation of this information amongst members which can be circulated via the national WhatsApp group and social media platforms.  The aim is to further promote the use of the online claim form previously circulated to Branches and representatives in LTB 448/22.

To support the communications strategy, we will also brief the appropriate Senior Field Officials on Tuesday 6^th December 2022 on the claims process detailed below and answer any questions they may have.  We will also circulate forms received through the online claim portal at https://www.cwu.org/rmg-ia-claim to the relevant Branches for their action/attention.

 ET Claim Process

Within 7 days of receipt of the email from the Postal Executive member, Branches will need to submit early conciliation forms to ACAS (all of the information necessary for this will be provided on the email received) including the Branch Secretary or Legal & Medical Secretary as the member’s representative.  This will allow Branches to track the process.

Branches/Representatives, having received the Early Conciliation Certificate and having concluded the Early Conciliation process without reaching a resolution, should then assist members to submit their ET1 form which must also include their ACAS reference number they have been issued with.  The representative listed will again need to be the Branch Secretary or Legal and Medical Secretary to ensure that Branches are kept informed around the progress of the case.  For all of the cases that are related to the issues referenced in the above LTB, the relevant PE members should also be informed of all emails from the Tribunal Service (this is not required for any normal tribunals not related to Industrial Action or Executive Action).

The relevant Postal Executive members will compile a central database from this information which will be used to track the progress of claims.  Branches are reminded that the processes attached are time sensitive due to the time limit on the submission of employment tribunals, therefore it is vital that cases are tracked and the work is carried out in a timely fashion.

Colleagues will also recall during the average holiday pay dispute, members in Scotland and Northern Ireland submitted claims to their respective jurisdictions, Employment Tribunals (Scotland) and Industrial Tribunals Northern Ireland and possibly Fair Employment Tribunals, which deal with alleged unlawful political and religious discrimination. Claims from members in these parts of the UK should be submitted to their respective tribunal jurisdiction office(s)

Branches will remain the primary contact point for any enquiries from members but the relevant PE member will be available to answer questions and assist Branches with the process.

The three Postal Executive members have also started work on resources for Branches in order to avoid duplication of effort.  Some helpful resources have already been circulated in LTB 383/22.

Whilst this process will undoubtedly produce additional work for Branches and Senior Field Officials, the importance of assisting our members to challenge any alleged discriminatory and or unlawful practises undertaken by the employer and or local manages to punish representatives and CWU members for being a union member, supporting their union and taking industrial action cannot be underestimated. Neither will the national union be found wanting when it comes to supporting/defending our members who believe they have suffered a detriment or discrimination at the hand of their employer or their agents (local/area/regional managers).

Any enquiries in relation to the content of this LTB should be addressed to the DGS(P) Department.

Yours sincerely,

Andy Furey
Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

LTB 477-22 – RMG Disputes 2022 – Claims for Unlawful Deductions from Pay and Trade Union Detriments.docx

Attachment to LTB 477-22 – CWU Branches

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2022 Dispute Relating to Royal Mail Group Breaking the “Pathway to Change” and Associated National Agreements and Protections for CWU Represented Grades Employed by Royal Mail Group Consisting of Royal Mail, Parcelforce and Fleet

Branches and Representatives will know that negotiations with Royal Mail Group on our disputes are currently at a stalemate and despite various exchanges of letters between the parties in the last few days no talks are planned at this stage.  We expect this position to change; however, in the meantime, in order to keep the pressure on, it was important that the union today served the statutory notice of discontinuous strike action to RMG as follows:

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Wednesday 14^th December 2022 and before 04:00 on Thursday 15^th December 2022. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

Any enquiries in relation to the content of this LTB should be addressed to the DGS(P) Department.

Yours sincerely,

Andy Furey
Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)     

LTB 474.22

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2022 Dispute Relating to Royal Mail Group Breaking the “Pathway to Change” and Associated National Agreements and Protections for CWU Represented Grades Employed by Royal Mail Group Consisting of Royal Mail, Parcelforce and Fleet

Branches and Representatives will know that negotiations with Royal Mail Group on our disputes are currently at a stalemate and despite various exchanges of letters between the parties in the last few days no talks are planned at this stage.  We expect this position to change; however, in the meantime, in order to keep the pressure on, it was important that the union today served the statutory notice of discontinuous strike action to RMG as follows:

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:01 on Thursday 15^th December 2022 and before 04:00 on Friday 16^th December 2022. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

Any enquiries in relation to the content of this LTB should be addressed to the DGS(P) Department.

Yours sincerely,

Andy Furey
Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)      

LTB 476.22

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POST OFFICE: PAY DISPUTE 2021/22 & 2022/23 – NOTICE SERVED FOR STRIKE ACTION (SUPPLY CHAIN) & ACTION SHORT OF A STRIKE (CROWNS)

Further to LTB 467/22 dated 28^thNovember.  Branches are advised we have today served the two-week legal notification to Post Office for the following action:

Supply Chain – Strike Action

• 24 hours’ Strike Action commencing at or after midnight on Wednesday 14^th Decemberand before 23.59 on Wednesday 14^th December 2022.

Crowns – Action Short of a Strike

• A Sales Boycott from 07.00 on Wednesday 14^th December until 19.00 on Saturday 24th December.

As previously advised, we remain available for negotiations, either directly with Post Office or via Acas.

Further developments will be reported.

Yours sincerely

Andy Furey
Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

22LTB475 Post Office – Pay Dispute 2021-22 & 2022-23 – Notice Served for Strike Action (Supply Chain) and Action Short of a Strike (Crowns)

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ROYAL MAIL GROUP DISPUTES: NATIONAL STRIKE DAY RALLY – PARLIAMENT SQUARE – FRIDAY 9^THDECEMBER – 1 P.M.

We wish to start by thanking all of our Reps and members for the incredible commitment you continue to deliver in these disputes.  It is truly inspiring to see your strength and determination.

A national strike rally for the Royal Mail Group disputes will be held on Friday 9^th December at Parliament Square, London, SW1P 3BD from 1pm – 3pm. 

It is vitally important as many postal workers as possible attend the event, along with family and friends.  We need the greatest numbers ever to demonstrate our anger at the way our members are being treated by Royal Mail Group.  We need you there in your thousands.

There has been a hugely positive reaction from members since the announcement of the rally earlier this week.  It is now crucial that every single Branch provides transport for and supports the attendance of as many members as possible.  We need thousands of postal workers in London, supporting the demand for the resignation of the CEO whilst demonstrating continued support for the union.

We also recognise the importance of maintaining picket line strength.  On this basis, every picket line in the UK will still need a strong presence.  We appreciate this will stretch our resources; however, it is important that both the rally and the picket lines are well attended.

Our Regional Secretaries are being asked to oversee Branch mobilisation, including the booking of coaches, trains, minibuses, and other methods of travel.

We have the potential to deliver the biggest strike day rally in our history.  We also ask that as many members as possible come to London in uniform so we can create a sea of red outside the iconic Parliament buildings.

Whilst we will do everything possible to resolve our disputes through negotiation, supporting the rally and maintaining picket lines must be the priority commitment for all Branches, Reps and members.

Build the support, book the transport and together we will make this a historic day for our union and one which will help us win this dispute.

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward                                                    Andy Furey
General Secretary                                      Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)          

22LTB473 ROYAL MAIL GROUP DISPUTES NATIONAL STRIKE DAY RALLY PARLIAMENT SQUARE FRIDAY 9TH OCTOBER 1 P.M_

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Claims relating to Industrial Action or Executive Action in Royal Mail Group

This is a form is to submit your details if you have suffered detrimental treatment by Royal Mail or Parcelforce because of either the dispute or through Royal Mail’s Executive Action.

https://www.cwu.org/rmg-ia-claim

REPRESENTATION TO THE GOVERNMENT AND OFCOM ON THE POSTAL USO

The CWU has today sent the attached open letters to Government and Ofcom expressing our serious concerns about IDS plc’s pursuit of a reduction in the Universal Service Obligation (USO) to five day letter delivery, as announced by the company last week.

The letter to Ofcom also raises our concerns about Royal Mail’s attempt to undermine the postal universal service through under funding of USO activities and prioritising of non-USO commercial services.

This is an issue that has been covered in the press, including in a Sunday Times article on 13^th November which raises concerns about staff being told to leave letters behind and prioritise profitable parcels.  The full article is available online at the following link: https://archive.ph/WcI6Y.

The Yorkshire Evening Post and Decision Marketing have also covered the issue, highlighting concerns of Royal Mail employees and the direct mail industry about letters being delayed.  The articles can be found at the following links:

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/people/royal-mail-staff-in-leeds-disgusted-as-bags-of-important-letters-left-to-rot-3899793

https://www.decisionmarketing.co.uk/news/industry-balks-at-claims-of-royal-mail-letters-go-slow

When Royal Mail was privatised in 2013, the Government rejected concerns from CWU and other stakeholders about the future of the universal service obligation (USO) and gave assurances that privatisation would not affect postal services.

Another article in the Times (Royal Mail’s plea to end six-day deliveries rejected, The Times, 18^th November) reports that in June the government rejected a request from Royal Mail to cut its legal obligation to deliver letters to businesses and homes from six days a week to five.  However, the article also states that Royal Mail is understood to believe it is now making headway with the Business Department on this issue.

The CWU is calling on the Government to reject Royal Mail’s request and to provide urgent assurances that the six-day letter delivery service will continue to be enshrined in primary legislation. Additionally, we are also calling on the Government to support an expanded role for postal workers. This can be done by using the advantage of daily deliveries to 32 million addresses to develop new products and services that can add social and economic value to our communities and businesses, ensuring the sustainability of Royal Mail in the long-term.

We are calling on Ofcom to launch an urgent investigation into what can only be described as a deliberate attempt by Royal Mail to run down and undermine the postal USO.

Any enquiries on the above LTB should be addressed to the General Secretary’s Office at jdunn@cwu.org

Yours sincerely,

Dave Ward                                                  Andy Furey
General Secretary                                    Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

22LTB472 REPRESENTATION TO THE GOVERNMENT AND OFCOM ON THE POSTAL USO

29.11.22 Kevin Hollinrake MP

29.11.22 Open Letter to Dame Melanie Dawes Ofcom CEO

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ROYAL MAIL GROUP DISPUTES: COMPULSORY REDUNDANCIES

Branches are advised RMG wrote to the union on 28^th November (Appendix 1) in respect of Compulsory Redundancies, seeking to establish an agreed selection criteria.  The Postal Executive today unanimously endorsed the attached response (Appendix 2) which makes it clear Compulsory Redundancy is utterly unacceptable to this union and our members.

RMG have indicated they plan to include Conduct and Attendance as part of the selection criteria, along with capability/skills and what they call “any other appropriate criteria”.  If RMG were to apply this approach they would be able to dismiss whoever they choose, which we cannot tolerate under any circumstances.

Compulsory Redundancy is an anathema to this union and that’s why we wrote to Zareena Brown, Chief People Officer, on 25^th October stating we “will not engage in inappropriate discussions on Compulsory Redundancies, let alone agreeing any selection criteria.”  Our objective remains to reach a proper long-term job security agreement for our members.  Accordingly, the Postal Executive is adamant there can be no Compulsory Redundancies.

In view of these disturbing developments, Branches and Reps are urged to bring this matter to the attention of our members over the coming days including when addressing picket lines.  We need to expose the despicable attitude of RMG, who evidently are preparing for Compulsory Redundancies.

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward                                            Andy Furey
General Secretary                             Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)   

LTB 471.22 ROYAL MAIL GROUP DISPUTES COMPULSORY REDUNDANCIES

LTB 471.22 APPENDIX 1

LTB 471.22 APPENDIX 2                   

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RMG DISPUTES – CONDUCT CASES TAKEN AGAINST CWU REPS OR MEMBERS AND INTERIM RELIEF

It is evident from the number of suspensions that have occurred in relation to the two disputes, that Royal Mail Group are taking an aggressive stance in pursuing conduct cases against CWU Representatives, picket line supervisors and striking members.

The DGS(P) Department has sought legal advice in order to ascertain what protections may be available through interim relief and unfair dismissal claims should dismissals occur and how to apply.  The following provides an illustration of how interim relief can be accessed, the strict timelines involved and how financially it may help Representatives who have been dismissed.

• Interim relief is a remedy available to employees who claim to have been dismissed for one of a number of inadmissible reasons, which includes dismissals for union membership or activities contrary to section 152 TULR(C)A (e.g. dismissals because of actual or proposed union membership, participation in union activities, or the use of union services). It is an emergency interlocutory procedure designed to ensure the preservation of the status quo pending the hearing of the unfair dismissal complaint.

The application for interim relief should be referred to on the standard ET1 online or paper-based claim form. A separate application setting out the interim relief sought should be submitted to the ET at the same time that the Form ET1 and Grounds of Complaint are lodged.

• In order to succeed with an interim relief application the employee must:

• comply with the strict mandatory application procedure under S.161 TULR(C)A (see below); and
• satisfy the tribunal at a special hearing that he or she is “likely to succeed” at the full hearing in showing that the dismissal was for a S.152 reason.

• The EAT’s comments on the “likely to succeed” threshold are that “‘likely’ does not mean simply ‘more likely than not’ but connotes a significantly higher degree of likelihood i.e. ‘something nearer to certainty than mere probability”. This is a higher hurdle than proving an unfair dismissal claim. The tribunal will assess the likelihood of success on the basis of the limited information before it: this is likely to consist of pleadings, witness statements and any documentary evidence disclosed by the date of the interim relief hearing, which should take place quickly after the lodging of the application.

• If the employee satisfies a tribunal that they are “likely to succeed” at a full hearing in showing that the dismissal was because of union membership or activity, then interim relief prevents the dismissal from taking full effect before the hearing. The tribunal may:

• Make a reinstatement or re-engagement order pending the full hearing; or

• If the employer does not agree to reinstatement or re-engagement (or the employee reasonably refuses an offer of reinstatement/reengagement), the tribunal may make a continuation of contract order, which will have the effect of keeping the employee suspended on full pay until the full tribunal hearing. Any payments made under a continuation of contract order are not recoverable by the employer in the event of the employee losing his or her unfair dismissal claim at a final hearing.

IMPORTANT – Time Limits 

Time is of the essence in these cases because the employee must present an application for interim relief, together with the claim form claiming automatic unfair dismissal, by the end of seven days immediately following the effective date of termination. Tribunals have no jurisdiction to extend this time limit for any reason. 

• Note that the employee must also produce (within the seven-day time limit) a certificate in writing from an authorised union official stating;

• that on the date of the dismissal the employee was or proposed to become a member of the union, and

• that there appear to be reasonable grounds for supposing that the reason for his dismissal (or, if more than one, the principal reason) was one alleged in the complaint [i.e. he was dismissed because of actual or proposed union membership, participation in union activities, or the use of union services].

For the purposes of this certification requirement, “an authorised union official” means an official of the union who is ‘authorised by [the union] to act for the purposes of’ section 161 TUR(C)A 1992. The Acting Deputy General Secretary(P) will provide the appropriate certificate to support any members that have a claim for interim relief. 

In terms of the involvement of Acas the usual requirement for claimants to have obtained an Acas early conciliation certificate/EC number before lodging a claim does not apply where the employee is also making an application for interim relief (Reg 3(1)(d) Employment Tribunals (Early Conciliation: Exemptions and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2014). However, practically Acas should be started. Please also note that the Form ET1 must state/confirm that there is an exemption to the usual requirement to providing the Acas Certificate number. There is a specific box on the Form ET1 for the claimant to confirm this.

In terms of the current issues experienced by CWU Reps, interim relief could be a viable option in appropriate cases although the issues will likely revolve around the specific reason for dismissal and whether the prohibited trade union reasons for dismissal under s152 are applicable in each case:

IMPORTANT

In order to assist Branches and Representatives, please find attached a draft Grounds of Complaint (Appendix 1), Interim Relief Application (Appendix 2)and CWU certificate containing the prescribed information (Appendix 3). The CWU certificate should be forwarded electronically to hford@cwu.org for Andy Furey to sign on a case by case basis prior to the step below.

The Grounds of Complaint should be amended for each claimant as necessary and sent with the Form ET1 to the tribunal. Where possible the application for interim relief/CWU certificate should be sent at the same time, but if this is not possible it should be sent immediately after via email to the correct tribunal office together with the CWU IR certificate. It would be a good idea to attach the Form ET1 and Grounds of Complaint to that email so that the tribunal has all documents in one place.

Postal Executive member Steve Halliwell will act as the contact point for Branch enquiries on behalf of the DGS(P) Department and Branches should urgently consider the use of this process where suitable and alongside the usual ET application.

Any enquiries in relation to the content of this LTB should be addressed to the DGS(P) Department.

Yours sincerely,

Andy Furey

Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)     

 LTB 469.22 RMG DISPUTES – CONDUCT CASES TAKEN AGAINST CWU REPS OR MEMBERS AND INTERIM RELIEF

LTB 469.22 Appendix 1 LS DRAFT Grounds of Complaint – Unfair Dismissal & Interim Relief

LTB 469.22 Appendix 2 LS DRAFT Application for Interim Relief

LTB 469.22 Appendix 3 LS CWU Interim Relief Certificate

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An important update for CWU members in Royal Mail Group.

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