More than 115,000 postal workers in the UK will stage a series of strikes in the coming weeks in a dispute over pay.
The Communications Workers Union (CWU) said it would be the biggest strike of the summer so far, demanding a “decent, proper pay rise”.
The strikes will take place on Friday 26 and Wednesday 31 August and on 8 and 9 September. The decision follows a recent strike action vote in which members voted 97.6% on a 77% turnout to take action.
The union said management responded by imposing a 2% wage increase, which it believed would lead to a “dramatic reduction” in workers’ living standards due to skyrocketing inflation.
CWU general secretary Dave Ward said: “No one takes the decision to strike lightly, but postal workers are being pushed to the brink.
“There is no doubt that postal workers are fully united in their determination to secure the dignified, proper pay rise they deserve. We cannot continue to live in a country where bosses rake in billions in profits while their employees are forced to use food banks.
“The CWU’s message to Royal Mail management is simple – there will be serious disruption until you get real pay.”
Ricky McAuley, director of operations development at Royal Mail, said: “After more than three months of talks, the CWU has failed to engage in any meaningful discussion about the changes we need to modernize or come up with alternative ideas.
“The CWU has rejected our offer of up to 5.5% for CWU grade colleagues, the biggest increase we have offered for many years. In a business that is currently losing £1m a day, we can only fund this offer by accepting the changes that will pay for it.
“Royal Mail may have a bright future, but we cannot achieve this by living in the past… “We are prepared to continue to speak to the CWU to try to prevent harmful industrial action but, as we have consistently said, we must it’s about both shifts and pay.
“We have contingency plans in place and will be working hard to minimize disruption and get our services back to normal as soon as possible to keep people, businesses and the country connected.”
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