Here is the latest Delivery Podcast as Mark Baulch talks to us about Doing the job properly, lapsing, pensions and pay.

https://soundcloud.com/user-53225609/the-u-word-workplace-special-episode-3

New Wage in Retirement Pension Scheme for all our Royal Mail Group Members

In the Four Pillars Guiding Principles Agreement we recognised that we had a unique opportunity to take a leadership position to influence the world of pensions and provide innovative new pension arrangements.  Against that backdrop, we agreed with Royal Mail Group a new Wage in Retirement scheme to replace the DB and DC schemes.

There has been many recent enquires regarding the progress of establishing the required legislation to allow our scheme to be introduced and today the Government’s Department of Work and Pensions released its response to the recent consultation.

This, along with the Government’s Press Release (please find attached both documents) represents a major milestone of progress and clearly demonstrates that the legislation to enable our scheme will now be drafted and introduced.

The consultation response clearly confirms that we are the pioneers in driving new forms of collective pension arrangements and that our scheme will be the first introduced, making history in this country.  Without doubt our best day will be when our scheme opens but this is still a significant moment.

This is extremely positive progress and an important moment to remind all our Representatives and members that none of this would have been achieved without their support and our brand of strong workplace trade unionism.

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

Yours sincerely,

Terry Pullinger
Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

19LTB165 New Wage in Retirement Pension Scheme for all Our Royal Mail Group Members

Attachment 1 – Department of Work & Pensions’ Response

Attachment 2 – Government Press Statement Released Today

Here is the latest episode of our Podcast – Women in the movement. It’s a great episode – please share it as widely as possible #TheCWU

TARIFF INCREASE – QUADRANT CATERING

 

Dear Colleagues

The department was recently made aware from the field of a change in the Quadrant tariff, which we had not received any prior notification of from the business.

We have now clarified the position with the business and they have provided us with details of the tariff changes that took place on 28th January 2019, following a review agreed with Royal Mail. 

Branches should note that the Union does not set, agree or endorse Quadrant tariff changes.

Colleagues will be aware that Quadrant has not increased their tariff since January 2018.

The attached gives some examples and indicates that some prices have being held and others have been increased.

They have also pointed out that they continue to run their “money off” promotions to provide value for money and to offset some of the new prices.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: dwyatt@cwu.org or shayman@cwu.orgquoting reference number: 312.01

Yours sincerely

 

Davie Robertson

Assistant Secretary

19LTB162

Tariff – Managed Sites Customers

Tariff – Breakfast Bar Customers

Unit Representative Briefings – London Division – Confirmation of Venue

Further to LTB 107/19, I am writing to advise you that a venue has now been confirmed for the rescheduled London Divisional Representative Briefing taking place on Tuesday 16th April 2019.

The details of the meeting are as previously advised (11am until 3pm) and the venue will be Hamilton House Conference Centre.  The full address is detailed below:

DATE DIVISION VENUE

Tuesday 16th April

11:00am – 03:00pm
London
Hamilton House Conference Centre
Mabledon Place
London
WC1H 9BD

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

Yours sincerely,

 

Terry Pullinger
Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

19LTB161

Royal Mail Logistics – Accident Near Miss & Hazard Reporting Process “STAR” (Stop, Think, Act, Report) – National Roll-Out:

LTB No. 452/2018 dated 8 August 2018, announced the trial of a new “near miss and hazard reporting” process which had been developed jointly between Royal Mail Logistics and the CWU Health, Safety and Environment Department for use in Logistics, aimed at helping to improve safety standards and better manage safety in the workplace. After reviewing the Trial outcome, it has been agreed to roll out nationally the Accident Near Miss & Hazard Reporting Process called “STAR” (Stop, Think, Act, Report) across the UK in all Royal Mail Logistics, Distribution and Fleet Services Units and operations. WTLL briefing sessions will be completed in all units prior to introduction in that unit.

The simple, easy to use ‘STAR’ system enables Logistics workers to report incidents via a simple report card and collection box process. The CWU Health, Safety and Environment Department have been fully involved in the development planning to introduce the “near miss and hazard reporting” process and we fully endorse and support this approach.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimated that if every single reportable incident not at present investigated by employers was investigated and acted upon, this could save UK society up to £2 billion per year in preventable accidents and incidents.

Near misses are warnings of failings or gaps in safety management systems, and can identify potential accidents before they actually happen. In doing so personal injury, pain, loss and suffering plus damage to plant, equipment, property and loss of productivity can all be avoided with thorough reporting, investigation, root cause analysis and remedial action.

History has shown repeatedly that most serious and catastrophic accidents and events were preceded by warnings or near miss incidents. Recognising and reporting hazards and near miss incidents can significantly improve worker safety and enhance the organisation’s safety culture. The HSE state that there is a direct correlation between the number of near misses and accident rates.

The intention of this new scheme is to proactively encourage staff to support and utilise the process in a “blame-free” culture by reporting all hazards they see and all near miss incidents they observe or are involved in, so as to ensure there’s a full investigation in to the hazard or how the incidents happened, how the risks arise and how they might be prevented in future.

The findings and conclusions can then be taken into account in revising the workplace risk assessments, working methods, dealing with accommodation issues, plant, equipment etc., so ensuring they are safe and fit for purpose.

If an incident occurs which does not result in an injury, but which clearly could have done, then it’s a ‘near miss’, and jointly Royal Mail and the CWU want to encourage every individual staff member to report it. Reporting incidents will be encouraged and not frowned upon.

Effective identification and reporting of near misses and hazards means preventative measures and controls can be introduced, reducing the likelihood of an accident occurring.

The near miss/hazard report cards will be accessible to all Logistics staff on the site.

The message to all Logistics staff is ‘please take the opportunity to submit any hazards you spot or near miss incidents you have , however minor you think they are’. Because if we don’t know where the real problems are, how are we going to prioritise our efforts? An effective near miss reporting process can be a fundamental element of a thriving safety culture. A near miss is a golden opportunity to prevent an accident. The idea is to get the information reported quickly. This allows an investigation to take place to identify root causes of potential accidents and to then assist with follow-up and corrective action so that ultimately lower accident and injury rates result. The hope is that staff will learn the importance of near miss and hazard reporting and begin helping deploy a sustainable reporting program that’s unique to their work and operations. The information will be collected and analysed for appropriate attention and discussed at the local joint Health and Safety Committee.

The National Logistics Safety Management Team will feed back to the CWU/HQ Health, Safety and Environment Department and to the RM Logistics/Trade Unions National Joint Health & Safety Committee.

The support of all CWU Area and Workplace Health and Safety Reps plus Distribution and Drivers Reps would be appreciated in encouraging local members to report any hazard or near miss.

The joint intention of Royal Mail Logistics and CWU remains that we work in a positive safety culture. To improve safety and encouraging openness, recognising issues and implementing controls.

In line with HSE strategy, Royal Mail will pro-actively involve, consult and inform CWU Safety Representatives in good time.

The intention of this new ‘STAR’ scheme is to proactively encourage staff to support and utilise the process in a “non-punitive”, “blame-free” culture by reporting all hazards, incidents, near misses, so as to identify issues early, ensure there’s a full investigation in to how the hazards or incidents happened, how the risks arise and how they might be prevented in future, so that we can stop accidents from happening. This gives employees a voice to help resolve safety related issues, helps us jointly develop an open culture whereby everyone shares and contributes in a responsible manner to their own safety and that of their fellow workers – NO BLAME!

Remember “STAR” is the right course of Action!

S = STOP.
T = THINK.
A = ACT.
R = REPORT.

Hazard definitions

• An Unsafe condition is defined as an unsatisfactory physical condition that exists at the workplace which could be a major contributor to an accident occurring if not rectified e.g., damaged equipment, pot holes etc.
• An Unsafe act is any act that deviates from a generally recognised safe system, safe way or specified method of doing a job and which increases the probabilities for an accident. It must contain an element of unsatisfactory behaviour immediately before an accident that was significant in initiating the event.
• If an incident occurs which does not result in an injury, but which clearly could have done, then it’s a ‘near miss’.
• A hazard is anything that is a source of potential damage, may cause harm, or adverse health effects on someone, such as chemicals, electricity, working from ladders, faulty equipment, bad lighting, uneven or slippery floor surface, an open drawer etc. The risk is the chance, high or low, that somebody could be harmed by these and other hazards, together with an indication of how serious the harm could be.

The PiC (Person in Charge) and Management are tasked with trying to resolve the issues and will regularly communicate updates through a ‘STAR’ Notice Board and via the Joint Health and Safety Committee Meetings and in consultation with CWU Health and Safety Reps. It may be that some issues take a while to resolve – staff can escalate issues through their CWU Reps if they don’t feel that Managers are taking the issue seriously enough.

The following Message and assurances to all employees is given by Royal Mail Logistics:

• The message to all employees is ‘please take the opportunity to submit any hazards you identify, however minor you think they are’.  RM Logistics wish to promote a culture of reporting with the support and help of all managers and supervisors.
• The support of all CWU Representatives is appreciated in encouraging employees within Logistics to report any hazards through the ‘STAR’ reporting process.
• The joint intention of Royal Mail and CWU remains that we work in a positive safety culture. To improve safety and encouraging openness, recognising issues and implementing controls in a ‘no blame culture’.
• In line with HSE strategy, Royal Mail will pro-actively involve, consult and inform CWU Safety Representatives in good time.
• The ‘STAR’ scheme intends to raise awareness, encourage employees to identify and report hazards, that can be jointly investigated, how the incidents happened, how risks arise, and how they might be prevented in future.
• The ‘STAR’ scheme is an essential piece of joint working, demonstrating a clear intention to improve and sustain safety performance in the workplace that will significantly reduce and sustain accident levels, in a “blame free” safety culture.
• ‘STAR’ was designed to give members a voice on safety issues and was not designed for disciplining individuals who raise issues and an anonymous option has been included in the reporting process to back this up. RM Logistics want all hazards and near misses to be identified, so remedial action can be implemented and prevent accidents from happening.
• In addition the Director of RM Logistics will be sending a letter to all managers requesting their personal commitment to ‘STAR’ and expressing his expectation of them which is to: lead by example; maintain and improve safety; not “walk by” and ignore issues; be respectful and trusting; promote an open, feedback-rich culture amongst the workforce; react swiftly to the discovery of unsafe acts or conditions; be transparent and fair; thoroughly investigate all accidents to identify the true root causes, looking beyond the individual’s actions i.e., systems, processes and management activities.
• This Process has nothing to do with ‘World Class Mail’ and is not connected with it in any way.

Attachments:

• ‘STAR’ WTLL Briefing
• ‘STAR’ Poster
• ‘STAR’ Near Miss/Hazard Report Card
• ‘STAR’ Staff Briefing PowerPoint Slides
• ‘STAR’ Management Briefing PowerPoint Slides
• ‘STAR’ RM Logistics/CWU Joint Statement

Note: It has been agreed that once stocks are exhausted a re-designed, improved Near Miss/Hazard Report Card will be introduced.

Yours sincerely

 

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

19LTB160 Royal Mail Logistics – Accident Near Miss & Hazard Reporting Process STAR (Stop, Think, Act, Report) – National Roll-Out

2.9.13.2 talkabout STAR (2)

Near Miss Presentation Managers briefing (2)

Near Miss Presentation Staff briefing (2)

RM Logistics-CWU-STAR-Joint Statement

RM04780 A2 Poster 28.03.18

RM04780 A5 Card 28.03.18

 

GDPR

Branches will recall LTB 077/19 issued on the 1st February 2019 which provided an update on the agreed Code of Practice around how both RMG and the CWU will move to a new process of data sharing that is unambiguous and not open to local interpretation.  The LTB further advised that CWU Representatives who need to receive data from RMG will be required to provide confirmation through a simple statement (attached) that allows Representatives to use their own device on accounts such as btinternet/hotmail/gmail etc.  Completed statements were to be forwarded to Laura Fleming at;

Royal Mail
Fourth Floor
185 Farringdon Road
London EC1A 1AA

Email: laura.fleming@royalmail.com

Further to this advice, RMG have since informed the Department of a change to the way in which electronic invoices are sent out for any ‘unpaid’ Union leave taken by branch members.  Both RMG and the CWU have agreed that in order to ensure Branch Secretaries and authorised substitutes continue to receive electronic invoices it will be necessary for those individuals to also sign the attached declaration to ensure that the two parties remain compliant with our obligations under GDPR.  Until the declaration is signed, Branch Secretaries will only receive a hard copy of the invoice.

The above process is to protect the personal details of CWU members taking Union leave and will further ensure we are fully GDPR compliant.  If you have not already received this, we anticipate a communication being sent out by Laura Fleming in the next few days seeking authorisation.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to the DGS(P) Department quoting reference 10020.

Yours sincerely,

 

Terry Pullinger
Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

19LTB154 – GDPR

19LTB154 – Appendix C