Post Office urges CWU to withdraw strike ballot

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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The Post Office today said it was disappointed at the CWU’s plans for an industrial action ballot in the 373 Crown Post office branches.

Paula Vennells, the Post Office’s Managing Director, urged the union to withdraw its ballot notification.

She said: "The Crown Post Office network is losing £55 million a year. We regret the fact that the CWU is unwilling to engage in a constructive dialogue about tackling this unsustainable financial position.

"We know having no pay increase is a very difficult message for our staff. The unfortunate reality, however, is that the Crown Post Office network is loss-making. Right across the country, difficult choices are being made by many public and private sector organisations and we are no different.

"Any form of industrial action will only harm our customers and do nothing to resolve the urgent need to reverse the losses in the Crown network."

The first half of the current financial year, 2010-11, saw a drop of £28 million in Post Office revenues compared to the same period a year earlier. Without the £150 million annual Government subsidy to support loss-making smaller branches, the Post Office would have recorded an operating loss last financial year. The Government has made clear its funding for the whole network going forward depends on a clear plan to eliminate the losses in the Crown network.

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Notes to Editors
The 373 Crown office branches comprises 3% of the Post Office network of around 11,800 branches. The remaining 97% of branches are run by subpostmasters and agents and are not part of the ballot planned by the CWU. In the event of any industrial action, these privately run branches will remain open.




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[BELIAL]

"Any form of industrial action will only harm our customers and do nothing to resolve the urgent need to reverse the losses in the Crown network."

Since when has that been an objective?

[DGP1]

As someone once said - strikes are the fault of bad management not the staff, nobody wants to go on strike but the overly aggressive managers we now have and the complete failure in communication will always lead itself to strikes.