Royal Mail strike postponed

October 19, 2017 at 12:08 pm

Royal Mail have assured that business will continue as normal, as they return to the negotiation table with the Communication Workers Union (CWU).

Postal delivery workers in Orkney will be continuing work as normal today, despite recent calls for industrial action.

Earlier this month, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) announced plans for a two-day strike, beginning today (Thursday), after 89.9 per cent of its members voted to take industrial action. This has now been postponed, however, as the result of a High Court injunction by Royal Mail.

A statement released by Royal Mail confirms that the High Court has ruled that any strike action would be unlawful, as CWU have yet to follow dispute resolution procedures set out in 2014.

“The contractual dispute resolution procedures under the Agenda for Growth must be followed before industrial action can take place,” it said.

“The court’s final injunction means that any strike action before the dispute resolution procedures have been followed would be unlawful.”

Last week — before the strike was placed on hold — Kirkwall postman and CWU representative Alistair Scollie encouraged his colleagues to take action, in order to improve working conditions.

“We’re seeing a deterioration in the service to the public in the way that, if somebody leaves, they’re not being replaced,” he explained.

“It’s happening in Orkney quite a bit now. People who leave are not being replaced, except by part timers. So, we’re losing hours every time somebody leaves, or moves on to another office, or retires.”

Mr Scollie, who has been employed by Royal Mail for 38 years, also voiced hopes that this dispute might be resolved without having to go on strike. Moving forward, Royal Mail and CWU have now returned to the negotiation table.

“We want to reach agreement – it’s business as usual while talks continue,” the Royal Mail statement continued.

“We care about every item that we collect, process and deliver for you. We know industrial action could disrupt your service. We are committed to reaching an agreement to prevent this.”

Royal Mail has also said that they will be making contact with the union, as a matter of urgency, to begin external mediation procedures. The company hopes to see this dispute resolved by Christmas, but believes that it could take longer.

Meanwhile, Royal Mail customers have been assured that service will continue as normal during this time.