When is Royal Mail on strike? Dates of next postal strikes in September and why today’s walkout was cancelled

Royal Mail workers have held a series of walkouts in August and September, which they have declared the “biggest strike in the UK since 2009”.

There were supposed to be four strikes in the initial action, but the final date was cancelled following the death of the Queen.

However, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) had already announced that more action was to follow.

More than 115,000 members took place in the first round of strikes, in an ongoing dispute over pay, causing significant disruption to postal services – here’s everything you need to know.

When is Royal Mail next on strike?

On Thursday 8 September the CWU stated that it would stage a new 48-hour walkout from Friday 30 September to Saturday 1 October.

The announcement came as it embarked on the third of four scheduled initial walkouts, with the next one scheduled for Friday 9 September.

However, later that day the union cancelled Friday’s walkout in response to the death of Queen Elizabeth II, which started a period of national mourning in the UK.

General secretary Dave Ward said: “Following the very sad news of the passing of the Queen and out of respect for her service to the country and her family, the union has decided to call off tomorrow’s planned strike action.”

Why are Royal Mail strikers working?

Mr 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”.

The CWU leader said: “Imposing a 2 per cent pay increase on the workers who kept the company going during the pandemic, 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.

“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.”

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “The CWU’s decision to announce further strike action is placing jobs at risk. Royal Mail is losing £1 million 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.

Will there be post on Royal Mail strike dates?

Despite “well-developed contingency plans”, Royal Mail acknowledged that these “cannot fully replace the daily efforts of its frontline workforce”, with major disruption to postal services inevitable on strike dates.

Royal Mail advises its customers to:

• Post items as early as possible in advance of the strike dates 
• 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 

The most significant effect is that Royal Mail will not be delivering any letters on these days, except for those sent by Special Delivery.

Special Delivery parcels are also being prioritised, although Royal Mail adds: “However, we cannot guarantee delivery of all items by 9am or 1pm next day.