LTB 030/19 - Post Office: Franchising of 74 Crown Offices to WHSmith - Further TUPE Consultation Meeting

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LTB 030/19 - Post Office: Franchising of 74 Crown Offices to WHSmith - Further TUPE Consultation Meeting

No. 030/2019

18th January 2019



Dear Colleagues

POST OFFICE: FRANCHISING OF 74 CROWN OFFICES TO WHSMITH – FURTHER TUPE CONSULTATION MEETING

I wish to provide Branches and our Crown Office members with an important update regarding progress made in our TUPE consultation meeting held on Tuesday 15th January with Post Office, WHSmith and our sister Union Unite. Due to the serious and complex issues being discussed, our negotiating team was supported by Ivan Walker, our legal expert. Both Post Office and WHSmith also had legal representation at the meeting.

The meeting considered a number of key issues that the Union is clear are contractual by virtue of being Collective Agreements and/or Terms & Conditions of employment and as such should TUPE across with any member choosing to transfer to WHSmith. We specifically pursued the issue of pensions following advice from Ivan Walker and Incentive Scheme Arrangements along with other critical aspects.

Following the TUPE consultation meeting, we have now received a revised “measures” letter from WHSmith and this is attached for information purposes. At this stage the status of the “measures” letter is unagreed and is therefore “work in progress”. However, major elements have been improved and included in the letter as a direct consequence of our representation. It is fair to say we are pleased with the progress made thus far, although there are still a number of key areas to resolve which includes vital Agreements including Managing the Surplus Framework Agreement (MTSF), Crown Office Staffing Agreement (COSA), the Collective Engagement Framework (CEF – including future recognition) and Benenden Healthcare benefit.

Notwithstanding the above I am pleased to report we have secured a number of positive commitments, primarily around pensions and the Incentive Scheme which are included in the attached Joint Statement of Intent, signed up to by all parties involved. Branches will note that a further TUPE consultation meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday 29th January, at which we are hoping a final “measures” letter will be agreed. However we are not underestimating how difficult this may be as there are some important areas where different opinions are currently held, requiring further analysis and research from various participants in the talks.

We are clearly in serious dialogue with WHSmith and as a consequence we are making good progress and are hopeful this may continue. Our clear objective is to bring these matters to a successful conclusion at the earliest opportunity in order that members can make informed decisions about TUPE and their future.

Further developments will be reported.

Yours sincerely



Andy Furey

Assistant Secretary

19LTB030 Post Office – Franchising of 74 Crown Offices to WHSmith – Further TUPE Consultation Meeting https://emails.cwu.org/t/d-l-nhduke-ztkjiuyil-i/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Attachment 1 to LTB030-19 https://emails.cwu.org/t/d-l-nhduke-ztkjiuyil-d/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Attachment 2 to LTB030-19 https://emails.cwu.org/t/d-l-nhduke-ztkjiuyil-h/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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