‘It’s an astonishing level of support you are giving to the union, you care about the service you are giving to the public, you act as an inspiration to workers everywhere,’ said CWU General Secretary Dave Ward yesterday.
Ward was speaking to the picket line of over 50 striking postal workers outside Whitechapel Royal Mail Sorting Office in East London.
‘We know the gravity of the situation,’ he continued. ‘We’ve got a real fight for the future of members’ jobs. And the future of Royal Mail.
‘In reality, a few at the top are trying to destroy Royal Mail. We have got to keep going for what you deserve and what the public deserve.
‘They say they are losing a million a day. But they burnt one billion in the last month – £600m to share-holders and £400m for GLS (General Logistics Systems) an international acquisition.
‘They are running the company into the ground to make it into a parcel courier.
‘They want self-employed workers, agency workers, and new entrants on 20% less pay than current workers.
‘Taxpayers would end up subsidising this workforce.
‘Thank you for your continued support. We cannot walk away from this dispute.
‘We will use Christmas to regroup and look at all the issues and see if we can come to a new situation. We will be re-balloting.
‘When we are fighting for jobs and the service, are you guys up for this?’
The assembled pickets roared ‘YES!’
On the CWU picket line at Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, CWU Rep Phil Jarratt told News Line: ‘There are escalating attacks on the unions, but no one seems to have a long-term plan.
‘A general strike would be a good idea – get them all singing from the same page.’
At Stoke Newington Delivery Office in London, N16, CWU pickets told News Line that not a single member has crossed the picket line and that mail is piling up to the ceiling of their office.
CWU Rep Matt Wood said: ‘The fact that management does not want to talk to us and are trying other various tactics, shows that they’re trying to break the strike.
‘At the moment, management believes that if they can smash the union they’ll be able to do just as they please.
‘But we’re determined to stay strong and so they’ll have to give in and comeback to the negotiating table.
‘For us there’s no point in giving in, if we do, we’ll have nothing, not even a job, so that is why we have to continue the fight.’
At Camden Delivery Office in North West London, CWU member Gary told News Line: ‘We’re fighting to defend our jobs and get a pay increase. The cost of living is too high. People can’t afford rent, food or fuel.
‘The bosses are raking it in with big profits, and they’ve been wasting money.
‘They want to make Royal Mail into a courier which will not deliver to every address in Britain.
‘The government is not willing to negotiate while MPs are deciding their own pay rises. ‘Everybody should come out in a general strike.
‘The government are spending money on killing people in Ukraine and other countries but they can’t spend money on feeding workers.
‘We need a general strike to bring the Tory government down.’