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Royal Mail workers are set to go on strike on Friday, August 26 – the first day of four planned walkouts which have been planned across August and September due to disputes over pay. Friday will be the first time that postal staff will have striked since 2013, with more than 115,000 workers, including delivery workers and those who work in sorting offices, expected to strike.
The Communication Workers Union (CWU), according to the Royal Mail website, has called on its members to take strike action on August 26, August 31, September 8, and September 9. As a result, there will be limited post on these days.
On the days where strike action is taking place, Royal Mail has said that it will deliver as many Special Delivery and Tracked 24 parcels as it possibly can, and will also prioritise the delivery of COVID test kits and prescriptions, where possible. Letters will not be delivered.
Ahead of the strikes, Royal Mail has advised people to post their items as far in advance as they can ahead of the strike dates. You can also post items at postboxes and post offices, although collections, Royal Mail has warned, will be taking place far less frequently.
Customers have been asked not to visit delivery offices or customer service points on strike action days because they will not be open. They will reopen the day after the strike action has finished.
Post offices will still open, regardless of whether strike action will be taking place, except on August 26 and August 27, as the CWU has called a strike in a small number of post office branches. When Royal Mail strike action is happening, there will be limited collections made from post offices.
Royal Mail has said that it will continue to accept, prioritise and deliver Special Delivery Guaranteed items as their resources will allow during strike action, as mentioned previously. But it is unable to guarantee the delivery of all items before 9am or 1pm the following day.
Therefore, the next day guarantee will be suspended for items sent the day before, during strike action and until their services are running as normal again. If your item is delayed during this period, you will not be able to claim compensation.
As for Tracked 24 items, including COVID test kits and prescriptions, these will be treated as a priority for delivery on strike days. Although, there will be some delays on Tracked 24 items posted the day before, on the day of, and in the days immediately after strike action due to significantly reduced resources.
Other items posted the day before, during or in the days after any strike action will be subject to delay. Further details regarding the expected delays will be provided by Royal Mail during the period of industrial action.
Some brands have already let customers know of how disruption may impact their orders. Moonpig sent an email to customers, telling them that there will be delays to First Class card deliveries. It read: “Unfortunately these delays caused by the Royal Mail strikes are beyond our control so all we can do is advise you to order early where you can. Please note that our gifts and flowers use different delivery services so will be unaffected by the strikes.”
Moonpig has asked customers to visit their delivery page to find out more about their options and cut-off times.
Meanwhile, Thortful has informed customers via email that orders sent through Royal Mail may incur delays in addition to estimated delivery dates displayed during the checkout process. The card and gift company wrote: “We strongly encourage all customers to place orders early to allow for your order to arrive in good time. If you are ordering gifts, please consider selecting DPD as the delivery option, as this service will not face any disruption.”
For information on delivery estimates, customers are advised to visit Thortful’s Delivery and Returns page.
