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Royal Mail workers will strike again this week, in a continuing dispute over pay.
Staff already walked out over three days in August and September. A fourth was due to take place on Friday 9 September, but it was cancelled after news broke that the Queen had died.
More than 115,000 members took place in the first round of strikes, organised by the Communication Workers Union (CWU).
Here is everything you need to know about the upcoming action.
When is the next Royal Mail strike?
The CWU has organised a 48-hour walkout from Friday 30 September to Saturday 1 October. A similar number of workers are expected to strike as during the first round of action.
How will services be affected?
Royal Mail has said letters will not be delivered on strike days. However, post offices will remain open, as they are separate entities.
The company has apologised to customers, but says it has plans to minimise the disruption.
In a statement it said: “Royal Mail has well developed contingency plans, but they cannot fully replace the daily efforts of its frontline workforce. We will be doing what we can to keep services running, but customers should expect significant disruption.”
On days when strike action is taking place, Royal Mail says it will:
Items posted the day before, during or in the days after any strike action, will be subject to delay.
Royal Mail says it cannot guarantee delivery of all special delivery items by 9am or 1pm next day, so it is suspending the regular guarantees during strike action.
The company is advising people to post items as early as possible in advance of the strike dates, and continue to post items at post boxes or post offices, but be aware collections will be less frequent on days when strike action is taking place.
Why are workers striking?
CWU general secretary Dave Ward said its members are in the dispute for the “long haul”, adding that they will be fighting to get “the pay deal they deserve”.
“Imposing a 2 per cent pay increase on the workers who kept the company going during the pandemic, [and] made the record profits that the company during the pandemic, whilst the bosses walked away with huge astronomical bonuses for apparently hitting all their financial targets, is just insulting,” he said.
“I have never known workers in Royal Mail to be so angry towards the employer.”
The union said postal workers face a “dramatic” reduction in living standards because of the soaring rate of inflation.
CWU deputy general secretary Terry Pullinger said: “Our members deserve a pay rise that rewards their fantastic achievements in keeping the country connected during the pandemic, but also helps them keep up during this current economic crisis.
“We won’t be backing down until we get just that.”
More on Strikes
A Royal Mail spokesman said: “The CWU’s decision to announce further strike action is placing jobs at risk. Royal Mail is losing £1m a day. Strike action has weakened our financial position and is threatening the long-term job security of our postmen and women.
“The CWU has a responsibility to recognise the reality of the situation Royal Mail faces as a business and to engage urgently on the changes required.
“We are now a parcels business. We must adapt old ways of working designed for letters to a world increasingly dominated by parcels and act fast.
“We want to protect well-paid, permanent jobs long term and retain our place as the industry leader on pay, terms and conditions.”
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