More Post Office strikes!

For immediate release
 Fourth Post Office strike announced for Tuesday
A fourth round of strike action has been called by the Communication Workers Union for the whole of Tuesday May 7 affecting the country’s network of 373 Crown Post Offices. Management want to slash the network by 20%, impose a pay freeze and are refusing to negotiate with the union.
This full day of strike action is part of a dispute over closures, franchising, jobs and pay. Management continue to refuse to negotiate, despite their financial arguments being proved wrong with their calculations out by more than £6 million and their closure and franchising plans meeting opposition across the country.
Strike action will take place all day on Tuesday May 7 and will affect up to 4,000 staff working in 373 Crown (main) post offices. Post Office staff voted by nine to one (88%) in favour of strike action and have already taken strike action on Easter Saturday , April 19 and April 29.
CWU is opposed to Post Office plans to close or franchise 76 Crown offices – 20% of the network –which would affect over 800 jobs. The union is seeking protection for jobs and services, and wants to secure a fair pay rise for staff who have had no rise since April 2011. CWU believes the Post Office is trying to meet government targets by drastic cost-cutting.
Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, said: “Support among our members is growing by the day, with more staff going out on strike on Monday than in previous rounds of action.
“The Post Office’s arguments on pay and closures is on fragile ground. Their claims of how much a pay rise would cost were out by £6 million – double the actual cost – and their closure and franchising plans are meeting stiff opposition across the country with tens of thousands of names on petitions wanting to protect Crown offices.
“The Post Office’s plans on pay and the future of the network are clearly flawed. It seems more intent on throwing money down the drain flying managers across the country on strike days to try and keep some offices open. We think their money and focus would be better spent in negotiations trying to resolve this dispute. We again urge them to enter meaningful negotiations to find a mutually-agreeable way forwards.”
CWU has heard reports from yesterday’s strike action that hundreds of Post Office managers were sent across the country in an attempt to keep offices open. Reports included that at least one manager was sent from Belfast to Glasgow, managers were sent to Aberdeen but were unable to open the office, and managers from London were sent to Scotland and the north of England. Travel expenses will have been paid and most managers earn at least twice the hourly rate of post office counter staff bringing the cost to significant sums. At the same time, the Post Office tells CWU it is hard-up.
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For more information please contact:
Sian Jones, Press Officer, tel: 020 8971 7267, mobile: 0779 3314249, e-mail: sbjones@cwu.org