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UNDER former boss Rico Back, Royal Mail had been grappling with tumbling letter volumes and the need to shift more of its business towards parcels.
That was complicated by his strained relations with the highly-unionised workforce, however, which strongly opposed changes the German executive tried to bring in.
But after Back was dispatched last month, there may be a reset of relations under executive chairman Keith Williams.
The former British Airways chief is a veteran of industrial disputes, credited with defusing a massive row with cabin crews in 2011.
But repairing relations with the Communication Workers Union will only get Williams so far, because overhauling Royal Mail’s operations for the modern age remains a formidable challenge. The UK business has lagged recently, failing to make the productivity gains hoped for by management.
Back often said, to cushion every 1pc decline in letter revenues a 2pc increase in parcel revenues is needed. But ahead of full-year results this Thursday, analysts at Credit Suisse said they expect letter revenues to decline by more than predicted – so Royal Mail may once again take one step forward but two steps back.