13/12/23 Mount Pleasant Bulletin

[jimallen]

Hi. Here's the last Mount Pleasant bulletin of the year... We wish you all a merry Xmas and happy new year! See you in 2024!

MAKING IT UP AS THEY GO ALONG?
Those of us who lost hours have received the socalled
"buy down" pay... (minus taxes)! But we're
only compensated for 9 months-worth of lost
wages! And management tells us that if our
contracted hours are increased in the next two
years, we'll have to pay back the compensation!?
Really? Who said? How can any such "condition"
be attached to this (already) rotten "deal"?

EXPLAIN THIS!
Union reps sent a letter to the managers
demanding to know what's going on with
Scheduled Attendance. This year, reps weren't
even consulted about overtime/SA: managers
don't want to provide it, just like they refuse to
bring in an adequate number of Xmas casuals -
even tho' they need both! Indeed, to cover their
back two weeks ago, they asked white-collar staff
from 185 to help with the letter backlogs! It's
unbelievable!

NO TO THEIR EVR
Managers have also been sending out EVR forms,
banking on the fact that we're so fed up with the
job, we'd agree to leave on their lousy terms...
(Never mind that they can't manage to cover all the
jobs as it is!) A few workmates may well leave in
February, but if the bosses think we're going to do
their jobs on top of our own, they can think again!

WE THOUGHT THEY NEVER FORGOT?
Re-signs are the only way that us cleaners can
choose a different duty. But the last time there
was one was maybe as long as 2 years ago. The
Elephant keeps telling us that a re-sign is coming
soon, but it seems that he keeps forgetting to
organise it...

WELCOME BREAKS
The PSM might be new, but it's already tired and
worn out and regularly breaking down. Last week
again, it needed to take a "little sleep" for a couple
of hours on Nights... We know exactly how it feels.

WHY SHOULD WE CARE?
In PSA on Lates, the workload is through the roof
and Mr Witless is running around like a headless
chicken, trying to pass his stress onto us. He
might have pressure from above, but that's not our
problem. If management only bring in a few Xmas
temps on Lates and Nights, PSA letters and
packets will pile up, simple.

GRINCH SPIRIT...
This year (at least on Nights), the basic Xmas
meal was £7.50 and the "full course" was over £10
- which frankly, is too expensive for what was
served... and many (especially the temps) couldn't
afford it. Shouldn't management be giving us all a
complimentary Xmas meal - at the very least?

THIS CAN'T BE TEMPORARY!
By the way, we're glad that finally the mandatory
second person was recruited for the canteen on
Nights - starting this week! But why on a
temporary contract? This has to be a permanent
arrangement.

WE NEED TO LEAD OURSELVES
Some of us noticed that a new union Deputy
General Secretary was elected... but we also
noticed that the turnout for the ballot was only
13%! In a way, the membership spoke by being
silent: almost 100,000 of us felt it made no
difference which candidate joined the top CWU
bureaucracy in their mis-leadership.

WE'RE THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN "RAP "THEM
Even the Daily Mail reported how important letters
like NHS appointments and cancer results (a
matter of life and death!), are routinely delayed, so
that parcels can be prioritised. In parts of Kent
there's been only 1 delivery a week. Warrington -
no letters for a month? Apparently people aren't
even bothering to post Xmas cards this year. Yup,
the fine and rap over the knuckles hasn't made the
slightest impact on RM bosses' flouting of the
USO.

WHISTLISATION BY ANY OTHER NAME
Apparently RM's Chief Operating Officer (COO)
and head of HR are "leaving" in the new year. Will
they join Simon Thompson in the Bahamas? We
hear that ex-Whistl manager Alistair Cochrane will
be new COO. Which says it all, really.

[yellowbelly]

Free complementary Christmas meal! At least you've got a canteen with - I assume - tables and chairs.

My workplace Xmas meal - a Christmas sandwich meal deal from the supermarket round the corner to be eaten
sat at my frame or in the wagon. Get out of your ivory tower!

[SpacePhoenix]

Free complementary Christmas meal! At least you've got a canteen with - I assume - tables and chairs.

My workplace Xmas meal - a Christmas sandwich meal deal from the supermarket round the corner to be eaten
sat at my frame or in the wagon. Get out of your ivory tower!

Not all MCs have canteens that serve hot food on every shift