CWU Calls On Royal Mail To Adhere To National Agreement Regarding Mail Centre Network Changes

CWU Postal Executive advises all branches of an Emergency Motion to CWU Conference in June relating to the deteriorating position in Mail centre network changes.

Further to the previous assurances that we had received from the Business that the current Mail Centre Reviews taking place would be progressed in line with our National Agreement they suddenly announced last week that a decision had been made on the Thames Valley Case prior to the consultation process being concluded.

Branches/Representatives will be aware that after the earlier unagreed announcements made in 2006 that Royal Mail were considering that closures of Coventry, Reading and Gloucester, we made it clear to the Business that any further breach of the Agreement would be responded to by a Ballot of the Mail Centre Network. This latest example of making a public announcement of their decision on the 15th May 2008 when a meeting was already diarised for the 28th May 2008 to discuss the conclusion of the consultation exercise and the CWU response to Royal Mail's preferred option is totally unacceptable.

In addition to this, following the recent notification that Milton Keynes Mail Centre was now being considered for closure within the Northampton Study, we have to date been unable to secure a reasonable period for the appropriate consultation before the business case is put forward for endorsement.

Since the conclusion of the settlement of the dispute last year I have on a number of occasions requested both verbally and in writing a meeting to discuss in detail the Business' future Mail Centre strategy but again it appears they have no interest in letting us know their next proposed change until the plans are already well advanced.

In view of the above, the Postal Executive feel it is now essential that we demonstrate to the Business that unless they adhere to our current National Agreement, provide clarity for their future plans and honour the principles agreed under Pay and Modernisation we will not hesitate to respond accordingly. 

The Postal Executive have therefore endorsed that the following motion be put forward at this years Annual Conference:

Emergency Motion

This conference deplores the recent actions of Royal Mail's decision to disregard the National Agreement dealing with Mail Centre Network changes despite previous assurances that they (Royal Mail) would work within the terms of the agreement. Royal Mails dishonourable actions show nothing but contempt for the CWU, our members employed within the Mail Centre Network and their families.

We require a firm commitment from the Business that:

• No further Mail Centre closures will be announced until the full details of their future Mail Centre strategy has been provided at National Level by no later than the end of June 2008.
• They will adhere to our current Agreement regarding proposals for Mail Centre structural changes.
• They will agree with the CWU regarding how we will deal/mitigate any impact on our members from any rationalisation e.g. job losses, effects on earnings, voluntary redundancies etc.

In the absence of the Business providing the above commitments Conference endorses the Postal Executives decision to ballot all CWU grades who work directly or indirectly within the Mail Centre Network for Industrial Action consisting of Strike action.

The Postal Executive have of course recognised that the arrangements for the timetable of the Ballot will also need to take into account the other important National issues that are currently facing us at this point in time.

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