LTB 550/16 - WTRM Sessions (Welcome to Royal Mail)

[TrueBlueTerrier]

LTB 550/16 - WTRM Sessions

No. 550/2016

16th September2016



Dear Colleagues,

WTRM Sessions

This LTB follows previous information circulated to Branches regarding the Welcome to Royal Mail events.

Against a backdrop of falling membership, it is clearly of vital importance that the Union and its Branches are in a position to provide adequate and trained resource to attend the Welcome to Royal Mail events and ensure that we maximise the number of new entrants we recruit into the CWU, prior to them being dispersed to their respective units. However, it’s clear that problems have been encountered meeting this commitment which, on occasions, has resulted in the Union losing the crucial opportunity we have to recruit new members from the outset of their employment.

Branches and Representatives will recognise the importance of securing new members as soon as they enter the business which helps to strengthen our workplace organisation and provide the Union with greater long term stability. As part of the ongoing activity around WTRM (and following an in-depth discussion at the last meeting of the Postal Executive) immediate action has been taken to ensure that the Union and its Branches are in a stronger position to make the best use of the time we have allotted under the current national agreement to introduce and recruit new members to the Union. We also need to recognise that, in many instances, this will be their first encounter with a Trade Union and the concept of organised labour in the workplace – so we need to make these induction sessions count.

In view of the limited success of the initial WTRM activity (and despite the best efforts of Branches and colleagues who support these recruitment efforts) a number of meetings have been held with the business aimed at reviewing the structure and accessibility to the WTRM sessions and to maximise the opportunity for the CWU to attend and recruit new entrants.

The revised process will include timely notification of the WTRM sessions and their locations. This will ensure that Representatives are able to prepare in advance of the meeting with new entrants, and focus on the areas associated with a particular workplace or function (i.e. local workplace organisation, name of Rep(s), number of members on site, Branch details etc). It has also been agreed to change the 1 hour time slot for the CWU to commence at 11am and conclude no later than 12pm.

We can also confirm that additional locations have now been added to the original WTRM sites so there are now 30 in total (listed below):

Aberdeen Mail Centre

Battersea DO

Belfast Delivery Office

Carlisle Mail Centre

Edinburgh Delivery Office

Glasgow Mail Centre

Leeds Mail Centre

Manchester Mail Centre

Preston Mail Centre

HR Service Centre

Tyneside Mail Centre

Croydon Mail Centre

Tonbridge Mail Centre

Norwich Mail Centre

Northampton East Delivery Office

Peterborough Mail Centre

Ilford Delivery Office

Leicester Delivery Office

Chelmsford Mail Centre

Greenford Mail Centre

North West Midlands Mail Centre

Bristol Mail Centre

Shirley Delivery Office

Plymouth Mail Centre

Wheatstone House

Birmingham Mail Centre

Chester Delivery Office

Swansea Mail Centre

Warrington Mail Centre

Cardiff Mail Centre



Branches and Representatives will be aware that the Postal Department, in consultation with the Senior Organiser and the wider Organising team have provided information to assist recruitment activity at WTRM sessions and have produced handouts, leaflets and booklets which detail the benefits of Union membership. This information is supported by a specially commissioned DVD to be shown to new entrants that focuses on the Union’s positive role in the workplace and other benefits of membership.

Notwithstanding the above, the Postal Executive believe it would also be appropriate to provide additional support to help deliver the Union’s message at the WTRM sessions and, in doing so, hopefully increase the number of new entrants who take up Union membership. Branches and Representatives will recognise the importance of having an agreement that gives the Union access to all new RM employees and provides us with a valuable opportunity to showcase the CWU and the benefits of Union membership.

As a result, a recruitment workshop has been designed to up-skill and support those Representatives who undertake recruitment activity on behalf of their Branch or workplace. This is an ideal opportunity for existing Representatives to expand their role and develop their approach in speaking to an audience, as well as drawing on their own personal experiences of the CWU and learn to recruit new entrants to the Union in a classroom environment.

The workshops are open to all CWU Representatives currently employed in a Royal Mail business unit or function and, in particular, those who have a genuine interest in growing the Union’s membership and being the face of the CWU at the WTRM sessions in your location.

Any Representative who is interested in participating in this workshop should contact Lynn Browne at LBrowne@cwu.org (Mbl: 07753 776364)no later than 30th September. We would encourage a range of applicants that reflect the diversity of the Union’s wider membership.

The workshops commence at 11.00 and are scheduled to conclude by 15.00. They will be delivered by the Postal Field Organisers and arranged on a regional basis to maximise the opportunity for colleagues to attend. The details of the current venues are listed below.

North East – Regional Office, 4th October

Scotland – Glasgow and District Branch Office, 4th October

Midlands – Birmingham Branch Office, 11th October

Wales – Gwent Amal Branch Office, 4th October

Eastern – CWUHQ, 4th October

South East – CWUHQ, 18th October

South West – Bristol Branch Office, 4th October

South West – Exeter Branch Office, 11th October

North West – Greater Manchester Branch Office, 11th October

Northern Ireland – CWU Office Belfast, 4th October

London – London Regional Office, 11th October



Yours sincerely



Terry Pullinger
Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

[slinder123]

the union would be better placed to addressing problems in the workplace to try and get our members who have stopped paying union fees back on board before trying to get people to join. the negativity that is in the workplace will over ride any good that new members bring to the union in our unit our membership has dropped 40 per cent and you can see why

[Creditshampoo]

And the union should be more vocal in fighting for part timers who work full time...they're losing out on alot of higher weekly fees because of this

[fishtank]

Not difficult.
Ask some of the area reps when they last visited X, Y and Z offices... and then ask them why,, don't accept "too busy" as a valid defence.
Ask some of the divisional reps the same questions.

Potential union members want to feel part of something bigger than an office rep and some bumf sent to their door every time some faceless bod needs re-elected, we're failing at branch level and have been for years but it seems these invite only, if your face fits social clubs are untouchable.

[trythat]

Not difficult.
Ask some of the area reps when they last visited X, Y and Z offices... and then ask them why,, don't accept "too busy" as a valid defence.
Ask some of the divisional reps the same questions.

Potential union members want to feel part of something bigger than an office rep and some bumf sent to their door every time some faceless bod needs re-elected, we're failing at branch level and have been for years but it seems these invite only, if your face fits social clubs are untouchable.

Got to agree with you here, I always asked AreaRep to visit every couple of months. Gives members the chance to ask questions of Arearep and hopefully recieve the same advice.

I've never met Div Rep, which does annoy me, as I think the same as you, the more senior bods members meet the better, gets members interested and perhaps we can get more PT opg to join.

[dvbuk55]

I've never met Div Rep, which does annoy me, as I think the same as you, the more senior bods members meet the better, gets members interested and perhaps we can get more PT opg to join.

You won't be the only Rep not to have met a Div Rep, lucky you've met an Area one! The problem is there is insufficient recruitment carried out particularly with new and part time staff. They simply do not see the benefit of being a member when they see that many of the agreements are just being ignored. The problem the union has is that only part timers are being taken on who can ill afford the subs on the short contracts and do not want to appear a problem in case it jeopardises a full time contract. The rub is that as time goes on, and god knows what the FT/PT ratio is now, in an office of 100 there may be 55% FT, 45% PT of which 90% of the FT but only 50% of the PT join the union and that is an issue if any action needs to be taken. The longer it goes on the bigger the problem for the union.

[jetblack]

When I first started I actually had to chase up the local rep (for at least 6 months IIRC) to join the union. Not unusual where I am, and I have since seen many other new starters who haven't been approached at all.

Re. the sales pitch. I reckon it would be better off coming not only from reps, but from rank and file members who have had positive experiences with the union ( as I and many others have). I believe this would not only achieve more - it would also serve to "include" ordinary members in the work of the union. which in itself is important if we are going to get past this "exclusive club" syndrome.

[gazzathegreat8]

Its been a mystery to me since I started how a Union with a proud history could be so hopeless. It can`t do the basics right such as keeping members informed, I have not seen an agenda, minutes of meetings, or been invited to a meeting in the 4 years I have been a member.

It really is totally wrong that members are treated with such contempt, If a Union is not inclusive and democratic then it is nothing.

Every member is of the same importance, but the male, full time, long serving members seem to have the only influence.

As a Union Rep in a previous life I understand how difficult the job is, but if done right and the first thing you learn is recruit on the first day, it is the most rewarding work you will do.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

I think the biggest weakness the Union has is the branch structure as it seems to be set up for large conurbations and concentrated workplaces such as Mail centres and Very Large DOs. But, when it's geographically spread out, with numerous small and medium size offices it struggles with engagement.

I think we need a new breed of reps who can utilise modern forms of communication and reach out to ordinary members. For instance, I was particularly impressed by one rep in Birmingham (IIRC) just this week had a Union meeting being beamed live on Facebook. That's the sort of thing the branches should be looking at.

[dvbuk55]

That's the sort of thing the branches should be looking at.

That's if they actually want the input of the ordinary members TBT and I don't think they do. They want to be a law unto themselves where an elite few actually run the branch as they wish and not necessarily in the interest of their local members.