The World Socialist Web Site (WSWS) is publishing the first of two batches of write-ins received from Royal Mail workers across the UK in response to its interview with Ian, a member of the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee (PWRFC): “Royal Mail delivery worker explains ‘The Communication Workers Union is facilitating …
Read More »Parcleforce drivers to sue Royal Mail over denial of workers’ rights
DRIVERS who deliver packages for Royal Mail subsidiary Parcelforce are suing the company on grounds they have been misclassified in their employment status and wrongly denied workers’ rights. The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) said that thousands of Parcelforce drivers may be eligible to join the claim which, if …
Read More »Royal Mail cutbacks ‘could signal the end of the handwritten letter’
The USO requires post to be delivered Monday to Saturday and sets targets for first and second class post. Ofcom estimated the USO costs Royal Mail between £325 million and £675 million and warned it could become “financially and operationally unsustainable” unless the rules are eased. The company lost £319 …
Read More »Post Office bosses in Horizon scandal raked in £20m as lives were ruined
Port Office bosses raked in almost £20million while their IT system ripped subpostmasters’ lives apart, it has emerged. Analysis of company accounts reveals five bosses took home almost £19.4million over 24 years. Paula Vennells, who headed the organisation between 2010 and 2019, earned £5.1million during her tenure. She refused to …
Read More »Villagers’ fury as councillors give the green light to double the charge to cross historic Hampshire toll bridge which residents used for free for generations
Villagers have reacted with fury to councillors giving the green light to double the charge to cross an historic toll bridge which residents have used for free for generations. Despite angry locals blasting the £1 crossing at Eling Toll Bridge being doubled to £2 and introducing charges for previously exempt …
Read More »Royal Mail demands end of six-day letters delivery, plans mass job destruction
Royal Mail has spelled out proposals to end six-day-a-week letter deliveries in a submission to postal regulator Ofcom. The plan will see the destruction of up to 17,800 jobs at the national carrier. The projected job cuts are part of a global war against postal and logistics workers—including at Amazon, …
Read More »The Communication Workers Union “live Q&A” without members: CWU backs Royal Mail job-slashing agenda
An “Update on the USO—live Q&A with Dave Ward & Martin Walsh,” broadcast on the CWU (Communication Workers Union) Live YouTube channel last Wednesday, was a shambolic affair. Chris Webb, CWU Head of Communications, claimed the meeting allowed members “to have a say where the Universal Service operation goes.” This …
Read More »EMMA COWING: A precious glimpse into the Queen’s happy home
It’s a picture that has been burnished into the collective memory. Queen Elizabeth II smiling, a little frail, clutching her late husband’s shepherd’s crook while a roaring fire blazed behind her, just 24 hours before she died. We all remember the time, and indeed the place: September 8, 2022, at …
Read More »Royal Mail’s failure to deliver letters on time is a danger to public health
SIR – I received an NHS letter postmarked February 9 at 12.30pm on February 16. My X-ray appointment was for 3pm. Thankfully I was able to attend. Had the appointment been sooner, it would have been another one missed. Catherine Pepinster (Comment, April 4) is right that Royal Mail holds …
Read More »Royal Mail’s cuts pose risk to patient safety, warn NHS chiefs
Last week, the annual British Social Attitudes survey found that public satisfaction with the NHS had dropped to its lowest level on record, with fewer than one in four happy with the service. The public’s unhappiness was driven by GP and dental practices but reflected across all services. New data …
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