Now 115,000 postal staff ‘to stage summer’s biggest strike’

MORE than 100,000 postal workers are set to stage the biggest strike of the summer so far over pay, causing huge disruption.

Households could experience long delays to receive Royal Mail parcel and letter deliveries, with the effects continuing into the autumn.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) announced yesterday that about 115,000 employees, including around 11,000 in Scotland, would walk out on four days this month and September.

It is the latest blow to taxpayers in a summer peppered with strikes.

CWU general secretary Dave Ward said the action would cause ‘serious disruption’, although Royal Mail says it has ‘contingency plans in place’.

The walkouts are planned for August 26 and 31, and September 8 and 9. The CWU said nearly 98 per cent of its members had voted in favour of the action on a turnout of 77 per cent.

Mr Ward said members were ‘completely united in their determination to secure the dignified, proper pay rise they deserve’.

Royal Mail operations director Ricky McAulay said staff were offered a 2 per cent pay rise, with a potential increase of up to 5.5 per cent if CWU workers agree to changes in working practices.

Royal Mail said it was ready for further talks to try to avoid industrial action. It comes as:

Council workers in Scotland are locked in a pay dispute with local authority umbrella body Cosla after rejecting a 2 per cent pay offer in March;

Unions are threatening strike action that would cause rubbish to ‘pile high’ in Edinburgh during its festivals;

Passengers face more rail misery with unions unhappy at current pay offers.

Last week a trio of public sector unions warned that waste workers would strike for 13 days from August 18, leaving the capital’s bins unemptied if the pay dispute was not resolved.

Edinburgh city council’s Labour leader Cammy Day has said the council is working on a ‘Plan B’ to limit the impact. Alarmed unions now fear agency staff will be drafted in to replace striking workers and have demanded any such move be ruled out.

Crunch talks between the Scottish Government and Cosla were held last Wednesday but both sides have refused to say what was discussed or if an improved offer would be made. Deputy First Minister John Swinney said the Scottish Government has pledged to increase Cosla’s annual budget by £140million so it can improve the offer to council workers.

Meanwhile, talks between ScotRail and union chiefs will continue tomorrow in a bid to avert further rail strikes.

RMT members rejected a pay deal that would have given train workers, ticket inspectors and station staff a 5 per cent pay rise.

Travel chaos is expected on August 18 and 20 because of a separate dispute with RMT staff working for Network Rail who rejected a pay rise of up to 6 per cent.

‘Cause serious disruption’