Safe & Well – March 2018

Dear Colleagues,

Please see attached the March edition of Safe and Well newsletter with contributions from our USRs and field teams. This edition looks at “what damage looks like” with a refresh on safe drilling, there’s also a focus on asbestos awareness, solving the problem of accessing CANDID, looking at the safety aspects of driving (including driver distraction), a nudge for managers on the License To (as we look to round up this licensing year and head into the next) and also flagging the services of USRs when it comes to accident/incident investigation. And the usual batch of Near Misses and Field Top Tips (including around slips, trips and falls).

Yours sincerely

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

18LTB159 Safe & Well – March 2018

Safe and Well Issue 56 March 2018

View Online

CWU REDESIGN BOOKLET – QUESTIONS

Further to LTB 148/18 please find attached the questions for each of the four sections contained within the Redesign booklet – Conferences, Branches, Regions and National Structures. This may be a useful way of getting the questions out to all of your representatives so they can provide their input.

It may also be useful for drafting your responses and you can then type or cut and paste them into the online questionnaire.

We will send out an email with a Word version and the LTB online will have a PDF version of the questions from the Redesign booklet.

If possible it would be easier if you can please provide a response via the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/G62LN97

As stated previously:

Branches can only submit one response to the consultation and this should be signed or verified by one of the principal Branch Officers.

Please answer all questions as fully as possible – the dialogue boxes will expand to allow you to provide detailed responses.

For clarity and ease of analysis please do not provide a hand-written response – all responses should be typed.

Please note there is space at the end of each section for any general comments or to raise any relevant issues not covered by the questions.

Reminder – Closing Date

All responses to be submitted either by post addressed to Redesign Consultation, General Secretary’s Department at CWU HQ or via email to re-design@cwu.org – please note that all completed questionnaires must be received by close of business on 11 May 2018.

We would encourage all Branches to submit their views and opinions regarding the future of the union.

Any enquiries on the above LTB should be sent to re-design@cwu.org

Yours sincerely

Dave Ward – General Secretary  

Tony Kearns – Senior Deputy General Secretary 

18LTB158 CWU REDESIGN BOOKLET – QUESTIONS

Redesign Booklet Questions

View Online

Hanwell Delivery Office – Suspect Packet – White Powder Incident Thursday 15 March 2018

To: All Branches

Dear Colleagues,

Some rather sensational reports appeared in yesterday’s national tabloid newspapers referring to Postal Workers being treated by paramedics after a suspicious package was found at Royal Mail’s Hanwell Delivery Office in West London at 7:40am yesterday morning and went on to report that Police swarmed to the Hanwell Delivery Office, rushing to control the scene, setting up road closures as part of the investigation, specialist officers assessing the package and three people being treated by paramedics as a serious emergency situation developed etc.

The facts are that during delivery walk preparation sorting, a badly wrapped package leaking powder went over the duty holder working at a sorting frame, and others nearby. The Met Police who attended the scene declared the package and contents as “non-suspicious” and “non-malicious” soon thereafter, confirming that the contents of the parcel were harmless and the item was not sent with any malicious intent. No staff were injured and all are back at work, with mail deliveries being made to customers in Hanwell as usual without major disruption. The London Ambulance Service checked three people at the scene as a precaution but none were taken any to hospital.

The damaged packet contents were identified as “Borax” (sodium tetraborate decahydrate), which can be purchased over the counter and is sold as a naturally occurring mineral compound best known as a laundry booster and water softener. Borax is also used as a multi-purpose household cleaner with many uses throughout the house including craft projects.

A Royal Mail Statement read “The incident at Hanwell DO was reported to the Police and the area was cleared as a precaution. The safety of our people is of the utmost importance to Royal Mail and we have strict procedures in place to deal with any such incidents, which fortunately are very rare.”(End)

The scare comes just days after 4 malicious, suspicious packages were sent to 4 Labour MPs’ Westminster Offices and which are subject to a full scale Police investigation. This was reported in LTB 152/18.

RM Operations, RM Group Security, the CWU and Unite/CMA wish to remind all Royal Mail Offices and staff again to be vigilant at all times and to follow the “Be Aware”/”Stay Calm” Guidance and Risk Assessment process for any suspect items of mail that may be found in the postal system.

The Stay Calm guide for suspect items can be found online at: http://staycalm.online/on-site/incident/

Yours sincerely

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

18LTB157 Hanwell Delivery Office – Suspect Packet – White Powder Incident Thursday 15 March 2018

View Online

To all of the members throughout the Eastern no5 Branch.

I’ll start with offering my thanks for allowing me to be YOUR Area Safety Rep for the last ten years, we may not have seen eye to eye all the times, but ultimately, YOU have been at the centre of my thoughts in all that I have had to deal with, when changes have occurred and managers have tried to alter your work/floor/duties and locations.

When I started out we had 22 DO’s & 50+ SPDO’s… and a Mail Centre (with room to swing ‘more than one’ cat)… the business has been brutal in its attitude towards these locations.

We now have 17 DO’s & 11 SPDO’s… and a Mail Centre that are all bursting at the seams (no room for the ‘cat’ anymore!).

You will all be aware in your own locations of the impact this has had, and of the changes to your working practices.

Moving forward…

The Branch has been very active in visiting you all, at the outset for the ‘National Four Pillars’ campaign, where YOU, the members helped get a massive 89.1% vote, and to get the business back around the table, and subsequently to tell you of the outcome of the negotiations.

We are asking once again for your support in the current ballot, to get another massive positive response.

I will at this point say I was disappointed in the turnout for the Branch elections, these are the people who will be representing YOU going forward…

Remember, YOUR vote is YOUR voice, please use it!

Richard

Branch Chair

POST OFFICE: PENSION ARRANGEMENTS FOR POST OFFICE MEMBERS – POLICY TO PURSUE ROYAL MAIL AGREED CDC SCHEME

Branches will be aware that the Post Office closed its Defined Benefit (DB) pension scheme to future accrual on 31st March 2017 (despite the fact it had a healthy surplus) and imposed an unagreed Defined Contribution (DC) pension scheme.

We would like to advise Branches that we now have Postal Executive policy to pursue, on behalf of our Post Office members, a Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) pension agreement identical to that agreed with Royal Mail. As previously reported to Branches, this type of pension scheme requires regulatory and secondary legislative change. The DGS(P) Department, and also Royal Mail (and ideally the Post Office) are working together to lobby government in order to make these changes happen.

As a consequence of our policy we have submitted our claim to Paula Vennells, Post Office Group Chief Executive, and in doing so outline our policy whilst seeking a commitment that the Post Office will enter into negotiations in good faith to reach a Collective Agreement on pensions for our Post Office members.

A response from Paula Vennells is awaited and further developments will be reported as appropriate.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be directed to Lea Sheridan on 020 8971 7361 or lsheridan@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely

Andy Furey – Assistant Secretary                                      

Terry Pullinger – Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

18LTB156 Post Office – Pension Arrangements for Post Office Members – Policy to pursue Royal Mail Agreed CDC Scheme

If you are still unsure what option to choose on the pension forms you recently received, everything is fully explained in this short video.

Suspect Packages Delivered To Four Labour MP’s At Their Westminster Offices

Dear Colleagues,

CWU Branches and Reps will have seen reports in the News and Media regarding a series of four suspicious, malicious packages delivered to four Labour MPs soon after 9am yesterday at their Westminster Offices in the Norman Shaw Building where some MPs are based.

Some of the MPs’ staff members were taken to hospital; as a precaution after opening one of the packages but were unharmed and required no treatment. They were released shortly thereafter. The offices were initially cordoned off as a precaution but following a risk assessment and Police involvement, the offices were given the all clear and resumed business as usual.

The background is that the suspicious packages which originated from Sheffield contained a ‘sticky gel liquid’ substance which caused some minor eye irritation to those closest to the contents on opening the packages. The contents came with Islamophobia hate mail letters. The packages and letters are now Police evidence, subject to forensic examination as part of the criminal investigation.

A Specialist Met Police team of Officers were brought in to assess the contents and a Police and Security Services investigation is underway to track down the source and those behind it.

Immediately the news broke about the incidents, the Health, Safety & Environment Department engaged in discussions with Royal Mail Group Security to address any internal risks to RMG staff. Senior Police Officers briefed the RMG Manager at the Palace of Westminster, Royal Mail was briefed and his team was put on high alert to intercept any further incoming items of similar description.

RM Operations in consultation with Group Security have taken the decision at this point not to issue a National Alert due to the low risk to staff but wish to remind all Royal Mail offices and staff to be vigilant and to follow the “Be Aware”/”Stay Calm” Guidance and Risk Assessment process for any suspect items of mail that may be found in the postal system. The Stay Calm guide for suspect items can be found at staycalm.online.

Any significant developments will be reported in due course.

Yours sincerely

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

18LTB152 Suspect Packages Delivered To Four Labour MP’s At Their Westminster Offices

View Online

Publication of “Draft” Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018:

Dear Colleagues,

The Government has just published the “Draft” Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018:

This Statutory Instrument has been published in ‘draft’ form by the ‘Department for Exiting the European Union’ as an illustrative example of how the powers in the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill 2017-19 may be used to make the technical amendments necessary to ensure retained EU law relating to health and safety protections still continues to work after the UK exits the EU.

It is therefore a draft example that is intended to make technical and mechanical changes to any domestic legislation, which is the responsibility of the Health and Safety Executive, that otherwise could be affected by BREXIT.

All the proposed changes have been made to ensure continued operability after exiting EU. The draft does not seem to contain any policy changes or deregulatory measures and is more about ensuring continuity.

However it should be stressed that this is just a ‘draft’ for the purposes of showing how it could work and is not necessarily the final version.

‎See attached copy of the “Draft” Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018.

We will keep Branches, Safety Reps and Regional Health and Safety Forums updated.

Yours sincerely

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

18LTB151 Publication of Draft Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018

Health_and_Safety__Miscellaneous_Amendments___EU_Exit__Regulations_2018_.._

View Online

Government Consultation on New Legislation On Offensive and Dangerous Weapons – Knives Sold On Line – Post Office and Royal Mail Workers

To: All Branches

Dear Colleagues,

The Home Office on behalf of the Government has conducted a public consultation, on “new legislation on offensive and dangerous weapons” which amongst other things, seeks views on the proposal for creating a new range of criminal offences in order to prevent knives sold online being delivered to private residential addresses and to ensure the age and identity of the purchaser are checked.

The proposal for England, Wales and Scotland is that where a knife is sold online, it is an offence to deliver the knife to a private residential address and that knives sold online must only be delivered to and collected – by the person who made the purchase – at a place where the age of the purchaser can be checked. This new offence is intended to provide additional safeguards to the current legislation which already makes it a criminal offence to sell knives to a person under 18.

We note the possible options open to retailers include requiring that customers collect the knives at a store if the retailer has both an online and physical store presence, while online-only retailers could consider making arrangements for the item to be collected at a place where age and identity can be verified in person e.g., entering into a third party agreement with another retailer, collection service or post office etc., where age and identity can be verified in person with the important point that the purchaser’s age and identity must be checked. In the event that retailers makes arrangements with a third party to provide collection and age verification services on a retailer’s behalf, there will be an associated criminal offence to ensure that the age and identify of the purchaser is checked by the third party.

The proposals will require that the third party (e.g., Post Office or Royal Mail Caller’s Office Staff) that hands over the knife provides a defence for retailers and third parties to demonstrate that they have taken reasonable precautions and exercised due diligence, similar to the existing defences in the Criminal Justice Act 1988. This may also apply to catalogue/mail order service sales of knives and to postal delivery services for knives ordered online from abroad.

The CWU Health, Safety & Environment Department has responded to the Home Office on behalf of Postal Workers in the UK and along with Royal Mail has made a number of important points:

• The CWU recognises the importance of tackling knife crime and understands the intention of the proposal to better control the sale of knives which is a principle our Union would support.

• We have a number of practical concerns around the proposal for a new offence of delivering a knife to a private residential home or dealing with purchasers collecting knives from a Post Office or Royal Mail Caller’s Office.

• We strongly believe liability should sit with the vendor/sender of knives, not the carrier and/or its employees (CWU members).

• The introduction of this new law could well lead to an increase in online, internet purchasing of knives and if that should be the case then liability should rest with those selling and sending the knives out to buyers.

• Criminal liability should not be extended to those Postal workers making deliveries or staffing Post Offices and Royal Mail Caller’s Offices where parcels and packets are collected by members of the public and where:-

◦ Firstly the Postal workers will not know what the parcel/package contains and it would be wholly wrong to prosecute the Postal worker should a knife have been collected illegally.

◦ Secondly, if it is known that the parcel/package contains a knife or knives, sold under the new control law, again it would be wrong to hold the Postal worker responsible and criminally liable for establishing, checking and verifying the age and identity of the person collecting the package.

◦ Thirdly the Postal worker’s personal safety and security could be endangered should altercations occur as a result of the process.

• The important point is that the sending of parcels and packages are beyond ordinary Postal workers’ control.

The Consultation has closed and the feedback is being analysed. We await the outcome of the public feedback.

Yours sincerely

Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

18LTB150 Government Consultation on New Legislation On Offensive and Dangerous Weapons Knives Sold On Line Post Office and Royal Mail Workers

Home Office Dec2018

View Online