Local staff ‘would back’ post strike

OLDHAM could be facing a winter of discontent as postal staff gear up for a potential national strike.

Ballot papers on strike action were sent out to staff across the country yesterday, including 300 postal workers in Oldham.

A long-running row over pay, jobs and services has already sparked a series of walkouts across the country over the last few months.

The ballot closes on October 8 and strikes could begin by October 15, even stretching into November and the pre-Christmas build up.

Ted Stead, secretary for the Oldham branch of the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU), predicted if workers voted to strike, 98 per cent of Oldham staff would join the walk out.

Postal workers in Rochdale, who balloted members in June, have already held four days of action.

However, Mr Stead said industrial action was the last thing staff wanted to take.

He said: “We are handling more mail with fewer colleagues, staff are highly stressed and morale is at an all-time low.

“Royal Mail say volume is down by 10 per cent but staff numbers are down by 30 per cent.

“If there is a strike, it might get blamed for the backlog of mail, but there was already a backlog because of lack of staff.

“That is why you are getting managers having to deliver the mail in some cases.”

Royal Mail slammed the CWU’s decision to hold a national strike ballot while talks between senior management and the union leadership were taking place, describing the action as “wholly irresponsible”.

But Mr Stead said there had been no negotiations at national level.

He said: “We need negotiations on modernity and productivity and the introduction of new machinery, but Royal Mail has been introducing things by executive action.

“If Royal Mail stops imposing things, we will have no strikes. This was put to them again only last week.

“We are not wanting a massive pay rise, we are trying to protect the Royal Mail itself as a quality service.

“All we want is a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay. It is our livelihood.”