Communication Workers Union (CWU) pickets were out in force on Saturday morning, in the first of the latest strikes against attacks on post workers’ jobs, pay and conditions.
There was a barbecue on the picket line at the SE4 delivery office in Brockley, south-east London.
Over 20 striking CWU members and their supporters turned out and pickets and were in a very determined mood.
CWU member Bill Tolman told News Line: ‘It seems they’ve put in a management that just wants to harass everyone.
‘They say one thing and then they turn round and say another.
‘One of our lads was threatened with disciplinary action the other day.
‘I think there should be national action and an alliance with other unions.
‘You’ll get action from dustmen, buses and trains. The only people who won’t take action are in the City – because it’s always the public sector that suffers.’
CWU SE4 rep George Dickson said: ‘We’re being bullied and harassed by managers.
‘They’re putting more pressure on us to do more work for nothing and my way forward is an all-out strike, everybody to go out, all over the country.
‘It will be happening all over the country, so they need to stand with us.
‘I think we need to have a public sector alliance.
‘There’s more attacks happening on other workers all the time, they’re singling workers out, they don’t take any notice of the workers at all, just forcing things in.’
Gary Carter, another CWU member in SE4, said: ‘We’re fed up with the lies and bullying we have to put up with and if we don’t step it up now we’re ruined.’
On the picket line in nearby Peckham, CWU SE15 rep Billy Colvill said: ‘There’s been a magnificent turnout by the members to defend our right to have a union.
‘We’ve been told that the national ballot is going to go ahead and we hold our leadership to this.
‘The attempt by our leadership to get Royal Mail round the table has failed.
‘We now have to think seriously about what sort of struggle we’re in and what we need to do to win this dispute.
‘At the London rally last week the call came from the platform for a public sector alliance and I personally think that’s the way forward.’
He added: ‘I think our union should fully support the Vestas workers who are occupying their factory on the Isle of Wight and demanding nationalisation.’
At the Southwark Delivery Office, CWU SE1 rep Gary Steward said: ‘All hell is going on here. It’s all about provocation.
‘They are desperate to create an unofficial dispute.’
He added: ‘Round London they are going through the mill.
‘How these other offices haven’t walked out unofficial is unbelievable.
‘What my staff are saying to me is what they can’t understand is we’re striking against executive action, but we’re not seeing any tangible results.
‘What are we going to do when Royal Mail get everything they want, they’re not going to listen to us.’
He added: ‘But we’re not going to give legitimacy to their job cuts.
‘We signed up to the pay and modernisation agreement in 2007 and what they’re saying is the national union signed up to this and every office has to make savings and cuts.
‘We agreed to phase one and phase two at a local level, but we could never agree to phase three.
‘This is not just about all these changes, it’s about derecognising the union.
‘The union’s not disputing modernisation, but we were brought up to believe that modernisation meant better terms and conditions, more annual leave, not the dole and part-time jobs.
‘There has to be a public sector alliance.
‘If the Tories get into power, they’re going for full privatisation.’
There was a large picket of 30 striking postmen at Acton delivery office in west London.
CWU member Mark Moore said: ‘It’s time for one out, all out.
‘They’re imposing stuff on us in here.
‘They’re trying to make us cover duties.
‘We are short of staff, we’ve got three or four duties vacant and they are refusing to fill them.
‘They are trying to make us cover them before we take our own deliveries out.
‘This is what they mean by modernisation, not better or quicker machinery but everything on the cheap.
‘And the managers have the cheek to say, if you don’t like it, get another job.’
Fellow striking postmen Tony Farrell said: ‘It’s got to be national action.
‘The government are grinding the workers down.
‘They are doing everything for the bosses.
‘Inside, they are bringing things in that the union has not agreed to, creating a bad atmosphere.
‘We need a general strike, the whole country taking action together.’
There was also a large picket of 20 postal workers at the nearby Ealing delivery office.
CWU branch chairman Fred Barnfield told News Line: ‘Changes are being imposed on us from Monday (today).
‘If there is a vacant walk, instead of employing someone to do it, they are spreading it around the other walks.
‘They call it “absorption’’. It’s a job-cutting and cost-cutting exercise.
‘On top of this, the new chairman of Royal Mail, Donald Briden, has indicated that he wants to end the Royal Mail pension.
‘We’ve already been changed from our final salary scheme into a “care’’ scheme, which is vastly inferior.
‘This struggle is over the survival of postal workers’ terms and conditions and basically the existence of the union.
‘They are already unilaterally tearing up national agreements.
‘We’ve been informed that it’s more than likely that strike action will go national within the next two weeks.’
CWU member Errol Rodrigues said: ‘There needs to be a national strike.
‘We’ve had enough of this pussy-footing around.
‘Let’s bring it to a head.’
Ernest Betts added: ‘It’s not just us, it’s the car industry, steel, the airports, they should all come out on national strike.’
At Hampstead Delivery Office, CWU member Paul Anthony told News Line: ‘Royal Mail put profit before service.
‘This is not about efficiency or cost effectiveness, it’s about the destruction of workers’ rights to defend themselves.
‘The Royal Mail cannot be privatised, it needs to be a national service.’
North/Northwest London CWU branch secretary Jim Kirwan said: ‘We cover 33 offices.
‘The strike is solid as a rock everywhere. The picket lines are well attended.
‘Our members are determined not to be bullied or harassed by managers who are hell bent on destroying this service to the public.
‘There has to be a national ballot to resolve this dispute.
‘More and more offices around the country are demanding strike ballots.
‘There are 600 in the pipeline and more on the way.’
Hampstead CWU unit rep John Cotier added: ‘I can only reiterate what Jim said.
‘At the end of the day, we are not going to lose this one.
‘We need to get the strike ballots processed a lot quicker.
‘We need to build for a national strike, the sooner the better.
‘Management are putting out propaganda that they are talking to the union but they are not talking, they are dictating.’
