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Postal workers in Dumfries and Galloway have staged two days of strike action as part of an ongoing battle for better pay.
They walked out on Friday and yesterday, with further action planned next week.
Workers in Castle Douglas were joined on the picket line by Abbey councillor and retired postie Davie Stitt.
He said: “I fully support what they are doing.
“Everyone is suffering at the moment with the cost of living and hopefully they can get the outcome they’re looking for.”
More than 115,000 Royal Mail workers took strike action for the first time since 2009 as they demand more than the two per cent unions say was “imposed” on them by management.
Those who walked out in the region were among the 11,000 in Scotland to take industrial action with union bosses hitting out at the company’s record profits and payouts to shareholders and executives.
CWU general secretary Dave Ward said: “This is the biggest strike in the UK since 2009 and we have got over 115,000 members who are out on strike today after delivering a massive ‘yes’ vote.
“And it’s over pay. Our members have just lost total confidence in the actions of the company, the board, and they’ve lost faith in the leadership and people will understand that when they see the way that the company have conducted themselves.
“The company made record profits last year: £758 million. They gave away over £400 million to shareholders, they rewarded themselves with huge record bonuses for achieving their financial targets and then imposed a two per cent pay increase on postal workers.”
More strikes are planned on September 8 and 9.
A recent ballot of members saw 97.6 per cent vote in support of the action with a turnout of 77 per cent.
A Royal Mail spokesperson claimed that the industrial action had thrust the company “into the most uncertain time of its 500-year history”.
He said: “It is putting jobs at risk and making pay rises less affordable. We are losing £1 million a day. We must change to fix the situation and protect high quality jobs.
“We want to protect well-paid, permanent jobs long-term and retain our place as the industry leader on pay, terms and conditions. That is in the best interests of Royal Mail and all its employees.
“We remain ready to talk with the CWU to try and avert damaging industrial action and prevent significant inconvenience for customers.”
BT and Openreach workers also staged strikes yesterday and on Tuesday.
The CWU stated that its members were taking action against a £1,500 pay rise offered by BT Group.
Mr Ward said: “The reason for the strike is simple: workers will not accept a massive deterioration in their living standards,”.
BT Group said the offer represented an increase of around five per cent on average which rose to eight per cent for the lowest paid and was the highest pay rise in more than 20 years.
But Mr Ward said: “In the context of Retail Price Index inflation levels already hitting 11.7 per cent this year, this is a dramatic real-terms pay cut.”
