Piles of undelivered post seen at Essex depot as Royal Mail strikes threaten to cause Christmas meltdown

A mountain of undelivered letters and packages have been spotted at an Essex Royal Mail depot in photos taken inside the facility during the first round of strikes that threaten a huge backlog over the festive period. The images show sacks of undelivered items piled on top of one another inside three depots in North West England, South West London and Essex.

Shared in a Mirror exclusive, the images are said to have been taken over the last few days as workers take part in a 48-hour strike over pay, redundancies and start times. Royal Mail bosses are under pressure to avert a Christmas meltdown, but more stoppages are planned up to Christmas Eve unless there is a breakthrough in the row with the Communication Workers Union.

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The CWU claims Royal Mail wants to become a parcel courier reliant on casual labour. The union has accused boss Simon Thompson of refusing to attend what it claimed was a key meeting last week. General secretary Dave Ward said: “It’s beyond me why he didn’t bother turning up to the meeting that could have averted these strikes.

“Simon Thompson’s obsession with forcing through the destruction of workers’ living standards has risked a national mail meltdown at Christmas.” He said of the backlog: “Posties are willing to bend over backwards to clear it and get Christmas back on track.” More strikes are scheduled for December 9 and 11, with 48-hour stoppages on December 14 to 15, and 23 to 24.

Royal Mail said it will deliver as much priority mail as possible on strike days. It said Mr Thompson has been involved in the talks with the CWU for seven months, including four weeks of talks at conciliation service ACAS. He was not at the meeting last week but a source claimed it was held online and lasted a few minutes.

Royal Mail added: “We have the best pay and conditions in our industry. In an industry dominated by insecure work and low pay, our model sets us apart and we want to preserve it. We remain available to meet to discuss our best and final offer worth up to 9%.”

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