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Royal Mail workers are to extend industrial action to include Christmas Eve, it emerged on Friday, the latest salvo in a long-running dispute over jobs, condition and pay.
Members of the Communication Workers Union at the postal company, who are already due to strike for four days around Black Friday in November and December, have added six more days of industrial action, on 9, 11, 14, 15, 23 and 24 December.
Royal Mail has proposed a so-called “pay-for-change” offer, rejected by the union, which includes changes to shift patterns and Sunday working in exchange for a 9% pay rise spread over two years. Inflation is currently at a 41-year high of 11.1%.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Royal Mail, said: “Our preference is for an agreement with the CWU but the change we need is not optional.
“They should be focused on a resolution to this dispute for their members, and the long-term health of the business, rather than damaging strike action.”
The CWU said it wanted to agree a negotiated settlement and would continue to engage with the company. But it added: “Those in charge of Royal Mail need to wake up and realise we won’t allow them to destroy the livelihoods of postal workers.”
There were similar walkouts by CWU union members at the firm in August and September.
The CWU represents more than 115,000 postal workers at Royal Mail, which in October changed its corporate name to International Delivery Services.
Gerald Khoo, analyst at Liberum – which has a ‘sell’ rating on the stock – said: “The proposed strikes [in December] are clearly aimed at ramping up the pressure on management going into the peak season.
“We see a narrow window for agreement. However, even with a resolution to the current dispute, Royal Mail faces significant challenges in implementing restricting and reaping the associated savings.”
