[Update] The Royal Mail strike thread - Page 24

danielf · 22-10-2009, 13:31

No mail here, and I've been hearing DIY sounds coming from the house of my postie neighbour all day.

punky · 22-10-2009, 13:33

Its backroom staff that are striking today. Its tomorrow that posties and delivery staff will be striking.

And breaking news - 3 more strike days tomorrow. Triffic.

webcrawler2050 · 22-10-2009, 13:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by punky

Its backroom staff that are striking today. Its tomorrow that posties and delivery staff will be striking.

And breaking news - 3 more strike days tomorrow. Triffic.

So there will be mail today?

Flyboy · 22-10-2009, 13:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by punky

Its backroom staff that are striking today. Its tomorrow that posties and delivery staff will be striking.

And breaking news - 3 more strike days tomorrow. Triffic.

Hmm, three strike days out of one...that'll be something to see.

**Chris** · 22-10-2009, 14:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flyboy

No it isn't. It will seriously inconvenience them for a while. The strike is for two days.

Some of them won't be inconvenienced at all, judging by my missus' email inbox over the last few days. A great many of the online retailers she uses have been sending out mail saying they're using couriers during the strike. And a significant number of them have said they're now switching permanently to alternative carriers.

This strike is going to turn out to be a massive, long-term own-goal by the CWU.

Pierre · 22-10-2009, 14:18

strikes only work when the nation, or company, is so inconvenienced by the action that they have no choice but to capitulate.

The miners didn't win because we imported our coal to meet demand.

A mail strike, for personal mail such as this, will not be such an inconvenience. Also they don't have overwhelming public support. From what I can gauge most people I have spoken to or read about, think they need to join the rest of us in the 21st century.

So two days this week, and three days next week will not achieve their aims. They will need prolonged action and the question then is are the workforce really up for that kind of action.

Running up to Christmas? not being paid of 3 out of 5 days???

I was just listening to a women on radio 2, she works 6-2 earns Â£18,000. Not bad hours, not bad money. When asked what she was striking for she couldn't really give a compelling answer. "it's not the money I'm happy with my pay, it's the conditions and I want to make sure I keep my job" She doesn't know if her job is under threat!!??

I predict that most of the Royal Mail workforce will not have the stomach for major industrial action in the run up to Christmas, this wont last too long.

Osem · 22-10-2009, 14:28

I'm surprised all those dyed in the wool 'socialists' around here aren't vociferously condemning the role of that well known 'Tory' Peter Mandelson* in all of this.

He's committed to privatising the whole shebang after all....

* (you know that unelected guy whose running the equally unelected Brown's New New Labour Party)

**Damien** · 22-10-2009, 14:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Osem

I'm surprised all those dyed in the wool 'socialists' around here aren't vociferously condemning the role of that well known 'Tory' Peter Mandelson (you know the one whose running Brown's New New Labour Party) in all of this....

I consider myself 'left-wing'. A title hijacked by protesters unfortunately. However I don't support stikes, especially for public sector workers and I see little point when their are commercial competitors whose success would further undermine the organisation whose workers are striking!

I do not consider the privatisation of Royal Mail as a good thing either. It will force them to cut unprofitable services such as door-to-door deliveries every morning. Especially for rural towns and villages.

So the governments have made mistakes but none which justify the CWU undermining the very organisation they claim to care about and hastening it's demise.

TheDaddy · 22-10-2009, 14:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Damien

I consider myself 'left-wing'. A title hijacked by protesters unfortunately. However I don't support stikes, especially for public sector workers and I see little point when their are commercial competitors whose success would further undermine the organisation whose workers are striking!

I do not consider the privatisation of Royal Mail as a good thing either. It will force them to cut unprofitable services such as door-to-door deliveries every morning. Especially for rural towns and villages.

So the governments have made mistakes but none which justify the CWU undermining the very organisation they claim to care about and hastening it's demise.

They don't care about the organisation they care about the workers, who have voted in their tens of thousands to say enough is enough. Sometimes you have no other options and the only way a worker can truely make their voice heard is through withdrawing their labour and if that brings about the demise of the organisation well, who is to say that isn't better than the slow drip effect that's been leading up RM's inevitable future privatisation.

**Damien** · 22-10-2009, 14:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDaddy

They don't care about the organisation they care about the workers, who have voted in their tens of thousands to say enough is enough. Sometimes you have no other options and the only way a worker can truely make their voice heard is through withdrawing their labour and if that brings about the demise of the organisation well, who is to say that isn't better than the slow drip effect that's been leading up RM's inevitable future privatisation.

If they care about their workers, and their jobs, then the fiscal health of the parent organisation is important. They are doing real damage to the Royal Mail with Amazon and other retailers deciding to pursue other avenues for delivery. While some will come back and Amazon will recommence some deliveries with them it they will have permanently lost some custom.

As important as the "last-mile" deliveries are I doubt there is enough profit, if any, in them. It's the internet shopping deliveries which will be one of the biggest sources of revenue and the workers are royally screwing that line of the business into the ground. It is incidentlly one of the sectors the Royal Mail bosses want to address with their modernisations.

punky · 22-10-2009, 14:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by webcrawler2050

So there will be mail today?

I had mail delivered today.

The backroom staff who went on strike today (at 4am IIRC) had already sorted my mail for delivery by that point.

webcrawler2050 · 22-10-2009, 14:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by punky

I had mail delivered today.

The backroom staff who went on strike today (at 4am IIRC) had already sorted my mail for delivery by that point.

Buggery - no mail - guess I aint getting any

dilli-theclaw · 22-10-2009, 14:55

Indeedy - I got mail today. Well two lots actually which is odd.

Pierre · 22-10-2009, 14:58

Quote:

who have voted in their tens of thousands to say enough is enough

apparently 60,000 thousand yes, against Â£20,000 no.

I didn't think it had that much support, they really are delusional.

webcrawler2050 · 22-10-2009, 14:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomas T

Indeedy - I got mail today. Well two lots actually which is odd.

Ssshh stop rubbing it in lol I'm waiting for my new card to come, which was suppost to be today