In a fierce dispute over wages and jobs, the union representing 115,000 postal workers at Royal Mail has given formal notice of a poll that might lead to strikes.
The CWU is demanding an increase in salary for its members in line with the rate of inflation, with no strings attached.
As rail and Tube workers conducted the largest national rail strike in 33 years on Tuesday, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) said it was preparing a ballot after rejecting the company’s compensation offer.
Terry Pullinger, its deputy general secretary, stated in a video released on Twitter: “Today, we will serve Royal Mail Group with a notice regarding a pay claim, our demand for an inflation-based, no-strings wage increase.
“The corporation has mandated a 2 percent wage raise, which is light years behind inflation and woefully inadequate”.
Inflation, which presently stands at 9 percent, is expected to surpass 11 percent in October, according to the Bank of England’s most recent prediction.
The outcome of the vote will be known by July 19th.
“At that point, depending on where we are, we will decide if industrial action is necessary, and if there has been no movement, that is precisely what we will recommend,” Mr. Pullinger explained.
Royal Mail’s CEO, Simon Thompson, told last week that the company had offered a 5.5 percent wage increase and passed on a 2 percent increase with no strings attached to help its employees overcome the cost of living problem while negotiations continued with the CWU.
It was stated that the balance was contingent on the union’s acceptance of the company’s need to modernize to become a parcels-focused enterprise as a result of the gradual fall in letter volumes.
Royal Mail stated that additional negotiations are scheduled and that it still hopes to resolve the disagreement.
A spokeswoman said: “We find no justification for industrial action.
The CWU rejected our offer of up to a 5.5% raise for CWU grade employees, which was the largest increase we had proposed in many years.
