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Postal workers in Northern Ireland are to take part in further strike action, a trade union has confirmed.
The Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) said an ongoing dispute about pay and conditions, which led to strikes on Thursday and Friday, would lead to further action next week.
There are believed to be about 5,000 Royal Mail workers in the CWU in Northern Ireland and they engaged in strike action on Thursday and Friday.
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Further strikes are planned for Wednesday 30 November and Thursday 1 December, as workers seek an above-inflation pay increase backdated to April and better working conditions in terms of working hours, sick pay and redundancy processes.
The CWU has confirmed those strike plans will go ahead, leading to further disruption in the postal service.
Fra Martin is the Northern Ireland Branch Secretary for CWU and said that postal workers would not be deterred in their action.
“The strikes in Northern Ireland are quite solid, I’ve been doing the rounds around Northern Ireland.
“The anger on the line is at the Royal Mail board – it seems to our membership and the union that Royal Mail don’t want an agreement and they want to ruin Christmas for people in NI and across the UK.”
Mr Martin told Belfast Live that offers have not reflected the changed landscape since negotiations began.
“This process started in February and that was before the price-rise and inflation crisis,” he said.
“Our policy still is above-inflation pay rise and if Royal Mail were serious about this in February, the inflation rate was sitting between 5-7%.
“The business has been making £700m profit and our members, the people who made the profits, have been given 2%, it’s derisory.
“It’s a levelling down, a race to the bottom – it’s rich people getting richer and the poor getting poorer.
“And when you look around it’s not just the posties, it’s the NHS, the universities and Network Rail, all working class people are feeling the pinch.”
Further strikes are planned next week, as workers seek to gain concessions from Royal Mail and Mr Martin said those would go ahead.
“Our members are more determined than ever to see this through, that’s certainly the sentiment I’ve been getting from the picket lines,” he said.
Royal Mail meanwhile said it had offered a 9% pay rise, along with other concessions around redundancy schemes and working hours, saying it had tabled its “best and final offer”.
CEO Simon Thompson said that time was running out for an agreement to be reached.
“Negotiations involve give and take, but it appears that the CWU’s approach is to just take,” he said.
“We want to reach a deal, but time is running out for the CWU to change their position and avoid further damaging strike action tomorrow.
“The strikes have already added £100m to Royal Mail’s losses so far this year.
“In a materially loss making company, with every additional day of strike action we are facing the difficult choice of about whether we spend our money on pay and protecting jobs, or on the cost of strikes.
“The CWU’s planned strike action is holding Christmas to ransom for our customers, businesses and families across the country, and is putting their own members’ jobs at risk.”
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