Postal workers push ahead with strike plans

Guardian News and Media/London

Royal Mail staff are pushing ahead with plans for strikes in the run up to Christmas as the battle over privatisation intensifies.

The renewed threat of strikes looms despite the company’s 150,000 workers making instant paper profits of at least £800 on the free shares they were given as part of Friday’s privatisation.

Billy Hayes, general secretary of the Communication Workers Union (CWU), said the 38% gains staff made on the £2,200 worth of shares they were granted last week will not make “one scintilla of difference” to employees, who are expected to vote for strike action on Wednesday.

The union is planning a nationwide strike as early as October 23 before balloting for further strikes in the run up to Christmas. “It is likely to be an all-out strike first, then rolling strikes in the run up to Christmas,” a union source told the Guardian.

The union, which represents more than 100,000 postmen and women, had wanted to hold the strike - the first since 2009 - before the privatisation but the government started the sell-off sooner than expected.

More than 95% of Royal Mail staff were opposed to the privatisation in a consultative ballot earlier this year.

In an attempt to placate staff, who are officially balloting over pay and conditions, the government granted employees 10% of Royal Mail’s shares for free.

The shares, which were worth about £2,200 at the government’s 330p flotation price, were worth more than £3,000 by the close of the markets on Friday.

Staff are prevented from selling their shares for three years.

Thousands of Royal Mail employees are sitting on even greater gains because all staff applications to buy up to 10,000 of extra shares were granted by the government. It means some staff who had £12,200 of shares on Friday morning had almost £17,000 worth on Friday afternoon.

Hayes said: “Shares will make no scintilla of difference to postal workers who are far more concerned about their jobs. We expect our members will vote to protect their terms and conditions in our strike ballot next week.

“It’s more important than ever to get protections for job security and terms and conditions under privatisation. CWU won’t stand idly by; whoever owns the company will have to deal with us and the workforce.”

The value of the shares is expected to rise even higher on Tuesday, when most of the 690,000 people who bought £750 worth of shares are officially allowed to start selling their stakes. Michael Fallon, the business minister in charge of the privatisation, has attacked the union for pressing ahead with plans for strike action when staff have been offered a 8.6% pay rise over three years. “Teachers and nurses are only getting 1%,” he said.