Tribune – Labour leadership gossip, news, features and comment from Britain's left-wing magazine

by René Lavanchy

Talks between Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union aimed at preventing another nationwide strike are due to conclude next week, Tribune has learned.

Sources close to negotiations indicate that Royal Mail is expected to offer improved pay and benefits, but that the union may have to back down over other issues if it agrees to the deal.

Next week, the CWU’s postal executive committee is expected to be called in by national officers to hear the proposed agreement. It is thought officers will recommend accepting the deal, which will then go to a vote of postal workers.

A source said of the deal: “If it were a purely financial deal, you’d be rolling around laughing at it, but it’s a lot more than that.”

Another source said: “It will deal with the individual industrial issues such as the mail centre network, union issues. They’re at the end of the road. I suspect there’ll be a recommendation to accept. I don’t think people are going to be flag flying in the hilltops. I expect it’s going to be a difficult, complicated proposal.”

Talks have been going on since last November on how to implement Royal Mail’s modernisation plan, which aims to cut costs, automate mail sorting and re-arrange jobs and work patterns. Union members are concerned at potential cuts in full-time posts and the length of delivery walks. Failure to agree a deal last year led to a national strike lasting two weeks.

Royal Mail was due to give a presentation to members of the CWU’s postal executive outlining their financial position. “Royal Mail’s going to play poverty,” a sceptical insider commented.

A CWU spokesperson this week initially said that “we’re expecting there’s going to be ourselves and Royal Mail leadership with some final drafts to take back for approval”, but later said the union was not commenting on any prospect of an agreement. Royal Mail also declined to comment.