Striking postal union puts HQ up for sale

The trade union bringing Britain’s postal and phone services to a standstill has put its multi million-pound headquarters up for sale as it digs in for a campaign of strike action this winter.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which is locked in bitter industrial disputes with Royal Mail and BT, has solicited offers for its base in Wimbledon, according to City sources.

More than 115,000 Royal Mail workers joined 40,000 BT and Openreach staff in a nationwide strike on Thursday.

The CWU has promised another 15 days of industrial action against Royal Mail before Christmas, a move that bosses warn will force retailers into the hands of rival delivery companies during the crucial sales period.

It is understood that the CWU executive is on the hunt for smaller premises and is considering one offer that has already been made.

A union source denied speculation within the City that the headquarters – on which the CWU owns the freehold – had been put up for sale because the union is facing financial pressures. The source said: “Running strikes and ballots isn’t cheap. But our finances are in decent shape.”

They added that the CWU’s headquarters at 150 Broadway, Wimbledon were too large as many of its staff now work from home instead of coming into the office.

The CWU’s reserves fell by £1.5m to £12.1m in the year to December 2020. The union had a £23.2m hole in its pension fund, for which the executive agreed with trustees to pay £1.6m-a-year in top-up payments.

The latest accounts are yet to be published on the official Government register, but a spokesman for the union said pension trustees were comfortable with the programme to reduce the deficit.

The row between the CWU and Royal Mail stepped up a notch earlier this month after bosses announced plans to cut up to 10,000 jobs. Simon Thompson, chief executive, warned the toll could be even worse union bosses refuse to back down over planned walkouts.

The CWU wants Mr Thompson and Philip Jansen, his counterpart at BT, to be sacked for their handling of the disputes – both of which centre on pay and changes to working conditions.

A spokesman for the CWU confirmed the sale plans.