2022 DISPUTES RELATING TO ROYAL MAIL GROUP PAY AND BREAKING THE “PATHWAY TO CHANGE” AND ASSOCIATED NATIONAL AGREEMENTS AND PROTECTIONS

The purpose of this LTB is to inform Branches and Representatives that the department has today served the statutory notice of discontinuous strike action to RMG.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Tuesday 8th November 2022 and before 04:00 on Wednesday 9th November 2022and will involve all CWU Grades at Parcel Super-hub/Regional Distribution Centres, Royal Mail International, Warrington Rail Terminal, Parcelforce Worldwide Processing (Coventry/Chorley/Hatfield) including all Network Vehicle Operating Centres (VOCs) and Fleet sites based within these sites and any stand-alone Network VOCs. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Wednesday 9th November 2022 and before 04:00 on Thursday 10th November 2022 and will involve all CWU Grades at Mail Centres (including Processing, Engineers, Area Distribution, Collections, Fleet, Administration and Revenue Protection members), National Returns Centre, Air Hubs, Distribution Hubs, Walk Bundling Centres, Customer Experience, Admin/HR Services, and Manual Data Entry Centres – including all Network VOCs based at these sites. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Thursday 10th November 2022 and before 04:00 on Friday 11th November 2022 and will involve all CWU Grades at Delivery Offices, Mail Processing Units, Sub Postal Delivery Offices and Collection Hubs tagged to Delivery Offices. All Parcelforce Worldwide Depots (including Administration grades), Royal Mail Specialist Services (Relay) workplaces and stand-alone Fleet units. 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 421.22 2022 DISPUTES RELATING TO ROYAL MAIL GROUP PAY AND BREAKING THE “PATHWAY TO CHANGE” AND ASSOCIATED NATIONAL AGREEMENTS AND PROTECTIONS

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ROYAL MAIL GROUP NATIONAL DISPUTES – UPDATE

Further to LTB 418/22, following an invitation from ACAS, we can now confirm that the CWU and Royal Mail have agreed to engage with ACAS facilitation in an attempt to resolve our current disputes on pay and change.

Below is a Joint Statement that has been agreed by all parties.

                      ACAS Facilitation: Pay and Change Disputes

Following an invitation from ACAS, Royal Mail and CWU have agreed to jointly engage with ACAS facilitation in an attempt to resolve the current disputes on Pay and Change. There is a commitment on both sides to reach a resolution however we all acknowledge there are significant difficulties to overcome.

An opening session will now take place on Tuesday 25^thOctober with the objective to reach an agreed approach for further facilitated talks.

We can also confirm that there is no requirement on the union to stand down strike action as part of the ACAS process and the strike on Tuesday 25^th Octoberwill go ahead as planned.

The spirit, strength and resolve of our members was once again on display last Thursday and it’s crucial that picket line activity is again very active tomorrow, whilst observing the legal code of practice.

Further information will be provides to Branches, Reps and members in due course.  In the meantime, please ensure this update is circulated in all workplaces.  Any enquiries on the above should be addressed to the General Secretary/Andy Furey, Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal) at hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely

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

22LTB419 ROYAL MAIL GROUP NATIONAL DISPUTES UPDATE

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IMPORTANT UPDATE FOR ROYAL MAIL GROUP MEMBERS.

STRIKE TOMORROW IS ON AND ACAS MEETING TO TAKE PLACE. KEEP THE PRESSURE ON.

Further to LTB 418/22, following an invitation from ACAS, we can now confirm that the CWU and Royal Mail have agreed to engage with ACAS facilitation in an attempt to resolve our current disputes on pay and change.

Below is a Joint Statement that has been agreed by all parties.

ACAS Facilitation: Pay and Change Disputes

Following an invitation from ACAS, Royal Mail and CWU have agreed to jointly engage with ACAS facilitation in an attempt to resolve the current disputes on Pay and Change. There is a commitment on both sides to reach a resolution however we all acknowledge there are significant difficulties to overcome.

An opening session will now take place on Tuesday 25th October with the objective to reach an agreed approach for further facilitated talks.

We can also confirm that there is no requirement on the union to stand down strike action as part of the ACAS process and the strike on Tuesday 25th October will go ahead as planned.

The spirit, strength and resolve of our members was once again on display last Thursday and it’s crucial that picket line activity is again very active tomorrow, whilst observing the legal code of practice.

Dave Ward
Andy Furey

StandByYourPost

UPDATE ON NATIONAL DISPUTES

Further to LTB 415/22, which contained an exchange of correspondence with the CEO Simon Thompson, please see our response to his letter of the 19^th October.

Please ensure this response is circulated to Representatives and members in all workplaces.  We will keep you updated on developments, including with ACAS.

Any enquiries on the above should be addressed to General Secretary at jdunn@cwu.org and Andy Furey, Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal) at hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely

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

Mark Baulch                                   Carl Maden                                      Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary                     Assistant Secretary                      Assistant Secretary

22LTB418 Update on National Disputes21.10.22 Simon Thompson RMG

21.10.22 Simon Thompson RMG

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TUC Lobby- Letter to Branches

Many of you will have seen the shambolic events unfold after the appointment of Liz Truss as Prime Minister last month. Her plans for the new budget to cut taxes for the wealthiest in this country, whilst leaving working people struggling through the cost-of-living crisis are a disgrace. However, the Conservatives have now managed to make things worse by cutting their energy support plan and causing further market chaos.

The voice of working people in Parliament is now more important than ever. That is why we are supporting the TUC’s Parliamentary Lobby on Wednesday the 2nd of November from 2-6pm.

The Lobby will engage hundreds of trade union members with MPs from across the political spectrum, in short meetings on issues raised as part of the We Demand Better campaign. The CWU wholeheartedly supports the campaign and wishes to get as many of our members involved as possible.

Some of the demands of the campaign are as follows:

1. A £15 minimum wage as soon as possible
2. A real pay rise for public sector workers
3. New union bargaining rights for whole industries – protect the right to strike
4. Ban zero hours contracts and stop fire and rehire
5. Cut bills and nationalise energy retail
6. Hike universal credit and pensions now
7. Raise women’s incomes and stop workplace racism

How it works

The Lobby will take place in Westminster, with members gathering in the Central Hall and addressing MPs by region and constituency. You will likely have a meeting with other members or members from other trade unions, where you can discuss the demands of the campaign and the issues facing our workplaces and industries.

If you wish to meet your MP on these issues, you must register with the TUC here by Tuesday the 25th of October.

The TUC will contact you and help you book a meeting with your MP and make the most of the meeting. They will make sure you have all the information you need. There will also be several CWU representatives and staff on the day, located at the CWU stand in Central Hall, to help direct you once you arrive for your meeting.

Following the Lobby, there will also be a rally at Central Hall from 6pm-8pm, where General Secretary Dave Ward will be speaking alongside other trade union speakers.

We encourage every member who is able to travel to London on the 2nd of November to register to attend. Please contact your branch for details on covering travel and expenses.

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

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward
General Secretary                                             

E1 – EMERGENCY MOTION

Congress condemns Royal Mail’s recent disgraceful actions in announcing on Friday 14^th October up to 10,000 redundancies by August 2023.

This comes after the company posted record profits in May 2022 of £758 million, paid £400 million to shareholders and walked away from a Modernisation Agreement without any explanation.

The recent announcement is part of a wider jobs and asset stripping business plan that will lead to the breakup of Royal Mail, the end of the Universal Service and a wholesale levelling down agenda on postal workers jobs, pay, terms and conditions.

The plan is about turning Royal Mail into a gig-economy parcel courier, managing existing employees out of the business and replacing these with self-employed owner drivers and new starters on 20% less pay and 3 hour increase in the working week.

Congress resolves:

1. To call upon the Royal Mail Board to immediately abandon their planned job losses and work and agree with the union an alternative business plan in the interest of the workers, customers and the company.
2. To call on the Government to intervene immediately to protect the Universal Service and widen their current investigation into a takeover bid by VESA (a private equity investment group based in Luxembourg), to now include an immediate inquiry into the actions of the CEO and Royal Mail Group Board.
3. That the General Council will work with the CWU and all unions who wish to defend this public service and save the Universal Service Obligation.

Dave Ward                                               Karen Rose
GENERAL SECRETARY                           PRESIDENT

22LTB416 TUC Lobby- Letter to Branches

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2022 DISPUTES RELATING TO ROYAL MAIL GROUP PAY AND BREAKING THE “PATHWAY TO CHANGE” AND ASSOCIATED NATIONAL AGREEMENTS AND PROTECTIONS

The purpose of this LTB is to inform Branches and Representatives that the department has today served the statutory notice of discontinuous strike action to RMG.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Wednesday 2^nd November 2022 and before 04:00 on Thursday 3^rd November 2022 and will involve all CWU Grades at Parcel Super-hub/Regional Distribution Centres, Royal Mail International, Warrington Rail Terminal, Parcelforce Worldwide Processing (Coventry/Chorley/Hatfield) including all Network Vehicle Operating Centres (VOCs) and Fleet sites based within these sites and any stand-alone Network VOCs. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Thursday 3^rd November 2022 and before 04:00 on Friday 4^th November 2022 and will involve all CWU Grades at Mail Centres (including Processing, Engineers, Area Distribution, Collections, Fleet, Administration and Revenue Protection members), National Returns Centre, Air Hubs, Distribution Hubs, Walk Bundling Centres, Customer Experience, Admin/HR Services and Manual Data Entry Centres – including all Network VOCs based at these sites. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

The strike will cover all duties and scheduled attendance commencing between the period at or after 04:00 on Friday 4^th November 2022 and before 04:00 on Saturday 5^th November 2022 and will involve all CWU Grades at Delivery Offices, Mail Processing Units, Sub Postal Delivery Offices and Collection Hubs tagged to Delivery Offices, all Parcelforce Worldwide Depots (including Administration grades), Royal Mail Specialist Services (Relay) workplaces and stand-alone Fleet units. The industrial action will be discontinuous.

The Postal Department is working on a FAQ document and Branches/Representatives will be contacted in due course with further clarification on the above.

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 414.22 2022 DISPUTES RELATING TO ROYAL MAIL GROUP PAY AND BREAKING THE “PATHWAY TO CHANGE” AND ASSOCIATED NATIONAL AGREEMENTS AND PROTECTIONS

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CORRESPONDENCE REGARDING OUR NATIONAL DISPUTES

Just as we were holding a live zoom session with our representatives, Simon Thompson CEO sent a letter to the General Secretary at exactly the same time as he published it on his Workplace channel.  This was in response to a letter I sent him yesterday.

Please see attached my letter to Simon Thompson so that you have the full picture relating to this exchange of correspondence.

The CWU negotiating team met Royal Mail on Monday and were encouraged when the company indicated that they might be up for a different approach.  The purpose of my letter to Simon Thompson, who absented from the meeting, was to establish whether he supported the position of his team.

We met with the Chief Conciliator from ACAS yesterday and her deputy and set out our position in our disputes.  We told them that we were prepared to engage in serious negotiations with Royal Mail, providing the ground rules were established and agreed.  This would need to include no expectation for the CWU to stand down any strike action.

Any ACAS discussion will continue exactly in line with the letter that we wrote to Royal Mail on the 7^th October, previously circulated to Branches and Reps in LTB 400/22.

Regrettably, Simon Thompson’s behavior has shown once again that he is seeking to sabotage any prospect of serious talks and is not genuine about reaching an agreement with the union.

Finally, the union will not be discussing functional talks on Royal Mail’s Agenda for Change, until we have dealt with the fundamental issues about the company’s Business Plan and the unacceptable job losses, including the threat of compulsory redundancies, announced last Friday.

We believe that the CEO absenting himself from any future negotiations is a sign that his position as head of the company is now untenable.

Any enquiries should be sent to the GS/(A) DGS (P) Departments jdunn@cwu.org/hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward – General Secretary  

Andy Furey – Acting Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

22LTB415 CORRESPONDENCE REGARDING OUR NATIONAL DISPUTES

18.10.22 Simon Thompson RMG

CWU – 19 10 22 FINAL

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