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Post Office workers have become the latest group to launch strike action – following a row with bosses over pay.
Up to 1,500 members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) are on strike today at Crown Post Offices – the larger branches usually sited on high streets.
The union said its 24-hour strike would cause ‘considerable delays’ for consumers.
However the Post Office said half of its 114 crown branches had remained open despite the strike.
It advised customers to make use of services in sub-post offices or WH Smith stores if their nearest crown branch is closed.
Meanwhile, Post Office supply chain and administrative workers will strike on Thursday.
The union said this will affect sub-post offices – smaller branches often in more rural locations.
However the Post Office said it had put a range of ‘contingency measures’ in place and it expects business as usual at its 11,500 sub-post offices.
The strike action by staff at the Post Office, which provides over the counter services, does not involve the separate Royal Mail.
Royal Mail managers, under the union Unite, are set to go on strike later this month in a dispute over pay and job cuts.
It comes amid fears of a summer of discontent in Britain, with rail workers having already taken industrial action and unions for teachers, binmen, doctors and nurses threatening strikes.
Post Office workers have become the latest group to launch strike action, amid rising fears of a summer of discontent
Up to 1,500 members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) are on strike today at Crown Post Offices – the larger branches usually sited on high streets. Pictured: A tweet with a picture showing people supporting the CWU in today’s strikes
A map showing the open and closed Post Offices today during industrial action by the Communication Workers Union
The strike action comes after the CWU said it opposed Post Office management’s offer of a 3 per cent pay rise for the 2022-23 financial year.
The pay offer was made alongside a one-off lump sum payment of £500, and no pay increase for the 2021-22 financial year.
The union complained the pay offer was well below the rate of inflation in the UK – which hit 9 per cent in May on the Consumer Price Index.
CWU assistant secretary Andy Furey said: ‘The blame for this disruption lies entirely with the senior Post Office leadership, who have repeatedly failed – and wilfully refused – to set out a sensible and fair pay agreement.
‘Everyone knows that the only solution is a fair pay rise that properly rewards members for their extraordinary efforts in serving the public and delivering a profitable Post Office, while also taking account of the extreme cost of living.
‘There most certainly is money available, but management do not want to give workers their fair share.
‘Our message to the employer today is: don’t waste our members’ time by misleading statements.
‘Stop the spin and get serious about pay. Until you do this, the strikes will continue.’
Meanwhile, the union today tweeted: ‘Our small but brave Crown Post Office members are on strike again today. They are fighting for a proper pay rise from a company that has made millions.
‘They are few in numbers but they refuse to give in. The whole union stands with them.’
A Post Office spokesperson said: ‘We can confirm that 57, which is half, of our Directly Managed Branches have opened today.
‘Strike action taking place on Thursday 14 July is within our Supply Chain network and will not impact any of our 11,500 branches from opening as they would normally.’
It comes as Royal Mail managers across the UK are set to take industrial action later this month in a dispute over pay and job cuts.
The Unite union says 2,400 managers will work to rule between July 15 and July 19. They will also take part in strike action from 20 July to 22 July.
Deliveries and some services like tracked items will be likely be delayed during this period, according to Unite.
Royal Mail said there were ‘no grounds’ for a strike and it had contingency plans to minimise disruption.
Unite says the strike action is over Royal Mail’s plans to cut 700 jobs and cut pay by up to £7,000.
It follows strikes by members of the RMT at Network Rail last month which caused disruption on the railway.
Mary Bousted, general secretary of the National Education Union, last month said more than 450,000 teachers were also considering strike action if they are not handed a pay rise of up to 12 per cent.
She acknowledged there was ‘a risk’ that her union’s pay demands could fuel inflation, but added: ‘The risk if you don’t pay teachers properly is greater.’
Meanwhile, nurses have warned the new Health Secretary that they must be given an immediate pay rise as they threaten to strike.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) wants Steve Barclay to end a three-month delay and award its members a double-digit pay deal.
The union said a survey of almost 1,500 people in England showed that public support for nurses taking industrial action has risen sharply.
In May, 42 per cent of respondents said they were ‘very’ or ‘quite’ likely to back nurses but this has now risen to 49 per cent.
In its evidence to the Pay Review Body, the RCN called for a pay rise of 5 per cent above the level of RPI inflation, which is currently over 11 per cent.
But ministers have suggested a 2 per cent to 3 per cent award.
Pat Cullen, RCN general secretary, said: ‘Lack of staff is putting patient care at risk. The pressure on nursing is unrelenting and now soaring inflation means staff are struggling to pay the bills and going to food banks.
‘They are leaving the profession in their droves – the incredible financial hardship they face is proving the final straw.
‘After a decade of pay cuts by government, nursing cannot afford to wait any more. Nursing is a highly skilled profession and must be recognised as such – investing in the profession must start with fair pay.
‘No nurse ever wants to take industrial action but nothing is off the table for our members. Nursing staff may feel they have no other choice to protect patient safety.’
Sara Gorton, head of health at the union Unison, said: ‘The Government’s leadership vacuum is no excuse for further delay on putting NHS pay right. The Government is already months behind its own timetable.
‘Surging costs are having a terrible effect on staff and helping them should be top of the priority list for the new Secretary of State, not an afterthought.
‘Pay is crucial in making sure the NHS is properly staffed and able to provide the care that patients need.
‘Making a proper wage award will show that ministers are serious about protecting the health service and the millions who rely on it.
‘It’s high time the Government released the PRB reports to let nurses, healthcare assistants, porters, paramedics, cleaners and all the other vital NHS employees know if the inflation-busting pay rise they deserve will be delivered.’
A government spokesman said it is ‘considering the recommendations’.
Meanwhile, A-level and GCSE results could be delayed this summer after staff at the country’s largest exam board AQA voted in favour of strikes.
Members of the Unison union want to walk out over pay, having rejected a 3 per cent rise plus a £500 payment.
It could mean chaos while papers are being marked and scores processed.
And in the worst case scenario, it could stop pupils getting some of their grades on results day – although AQA says it has procedures in place to ensure a strike would have no effect.
If grades are delayed pupils may have to call universities to beg for their place to be held or risk losing it.
Unison members and members of the public take part in a TUC national demonstration outside Parliament to demand action on the cost of living. Nurses are one of many groups threatening to strike including teachers, following the rail and Tube strikes in June
A-level and GCSE results could be delayed this summer after staff at the country’s largest exam board AQA voted in favour of strikes (stock image)
Passengers queue for check-in desks at Heathrow Airport amid several weeks of chaos at the transport hub
Unison, which represents around 160 of the 1,200 staff at AQA, said the strike was backed by 71 per cent.
A turnout threshold of 50 per cent, needed to win ballots for strike action, was also reached.
Many more AQA staff in the Unite union are also considering a strike.
Unison regional organiser Lizanne Devonport said: ‘Staff have demonstrated they’re clearly unhappy with the way they’re being treated.’
AQA said pay rises would actually average 5.6 per cent and were ‘higher than many organisations’.
An AQA spokesperson said: ‘Our priority is always to make sure students get the results they deserve on time – and we have plans in place to make sure any industrial action wouldn’t affect that. It’s a shame that Unison is claiming otherwise, as this is wrong and only serves to needlessly frighten students and teachers.
‘We’re giving our people a pay rise that’s affordable and higher than many organisations, so it’s disappointing we haven’t been able to reach an agreement with the unions.
‘It’s clear that Unison doesn’t speak for the vast majority of our staff, as only around 5% of our workforce and well under half their own members have voted for industrial action.
‘We’ve made exceptional concessions – so, after a lengthy dispute resolution process, we’re finally able to give our people the pay rise they’ve been waiting for since April, to help with rising living costs.’
It comes as unions last week suspended a strike action by 700 British Airways check-in staff at Heathrow after the airline made an improved pay offer following weeks of chaos at the airport.
Members of the GMB and Unite unions had last month voted ‘overwhelmingly’ in favour of strike action amid a dispute over a 10 per cent pay cut made during the pandemic.
They argued that the pay had been reinstated for managers, but not for the airline’s check-in staff.
BA was accused of ‘treating its loyal workforce as second class citizens’ and told strike action would cause ‘severe disruption’ to flights at Heathrow.
But the dispute has been suspended after the airline made an improved pay offer, Unite has said. An ‘agreement in principle’ is understood to have been reached.
GMB and Unite members will now be balloted on the proposed offer.
The finer details of the deal have not yet been revealed, but union sources told the BBC that a ‘good offer’ had been tabled.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said on the announcement of the suspension of strike action: ‘We welcome that BA has finally listened to the voice of its check-in staff.
‘Unite has repeatedly warned that pay disputes at BA were inevitable unless the company took our members’ legitimate grievances seriously.
‘I pay tribute to, and stand with, our members who have fought hard to protect their pay.’
And the union’s regional officer Russ Ball added: ‘I want to salute the solidarity and bravery of our members, who, through acting in unity, have ensured that a vastly improved offer has been made.’
Nadine Houghton, GMB national officer, said: ‘All our members were asking for was what they were owed. British Airways finally moving on pay is long overdue.
‘It is very clear that workers organising and threatening industrial action is what has delivered.
‘All our members – who are predominantly low-paid women – wanted was to be given back the pay cuts BA imposed on them during the pandemic, threatening them with fire and rehire if they said no.
‘These are frontline workers facing anger from customers daily. The least they deserved was fair pay. The final decision on any next steps will be taken by them.’
Gala for militant rail union barons erupts into boos at mention of Sir Keir Starmer’s name
Militant rail union barons led a loud chorus of boos at the mention of Sir Keir Starmer during the Durham Miners Gala over the weekend.
The Labour leader had stayed away from the annual Left-wing gathering, citing a prior family engagement.
And it was perhaps just as well as firebrand RMT leader Mick Lynch told the crowd: ‘If the politicians of any stripe want to get in our way, we’ll roll them out of the way and give them our own politics.
RMT leader Mick Lynch, pictured, addressed the Durham Miners Gala yesterday
‘So instead of Keir Starmer and the front bench… you need to find your voice and it’s got to be the voice of the working people in struggle.’
The mention of Sir Keir’s name prompted loud jeers. By contrast, his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn was mobbed by supporters who chanted his name. The 73-year-old then stood on stage and uttered the single word ‘solidarity’ before retaking his seat.
Mr Lynch, whose union’s strikes crippled Britain’s rail services last month, warned: ‘I predict a whole summer of campaigns even going into winter until we get more equality in our economy.’
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