Union hires firm behind Obama's campaign to fight seel off

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Union hires firm behind Obama's email campaign to fight Royal Mail sell-off

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Blue State Digital will advise Communication Workers' Union on online campaigning, including instant communication with supporters and online petitioning against the plans

* Stephen Bates
* guardian.co.uk, Monday 2 March 2009 11.39 GMT
* Article history

The Communication Workers' Union has hired the US company behind Barack Obama's successful email recruitment campaign for the presidency to advise it in its fight against the government's plans to partly privatise the Royal Mail.

Blue State Digital, which has staff in London, has met leaders of the CWU several times in recent months and will be advising the union on online campaigning, including instant communication with supporters and online petitioning against the plans.

The union has defended itself against charges that it is employing exactly the sort of modern technology which is making so many of the Royal Mail's old services redundant. A CWU spokeswoman said: "We are a very traditional trade union, however we also represent a lot of people who work in IT, and online revenue has a part to play in the postal market. We are also using mail shots.

"People do appreciate getting information direct from source through online contact. It does personalise it and it does mean we are able to reach more people. We recognise that online campaigning has a huge part to play in reaching the British public."

Many thousand of Obama campaign workers were startled – and impressed – to get "personal" emails and messages from the president-elect thanking them for their help with his campaign, within moments of his victory being confirmed on election night last November.

Blue State Digital helped to mobilise 3 million US donors for the Democratic candidate's campaign, which contributed to the raising of $500m (£352m). It is also working in Britain on an anti-BNP campaign and – ironically – Unions Together, the organisation that aims to improve links between Labour and the union movement. The company's assistance to the CWU is understood to be open-ended, for the duration of the campaign.

In an interview with the Observer yesterday, the business secretary, Peter Mandelson, accused the CWU of using dishonest "scare tactics" that could cost workers their pensions and even their jobs.

Mandelson said there would be no turning back from the 30% sell-off, despite fierce opposition from the union and at least 130 Labour MPs and two members of the cabinet, who are opposed to partial privatisation.