The Royal Mail national strike is unacceptable and represents a death wish on behalf of the CWU postal union.
Even without the strike, Royal Mail is predicted to lose some 8% of its mail volume this year. This is due to lack of modernisation, the internet and competitors taking away its business. The strike could accelerate this demise with an FSB survey today revealing that 70 per cent of small business customers are saying they will lose money and that half are considering leaving Royal Mail.
Not helped by a history of poor industrial relations, urgently needed modernisation has been constantly delayed over the last 12 years. This strike is only the latest in a history of union militancy that, frankly, resembles what we thought we had left behind in the 1970s. Although it is for the unions and management to resolve the strike, the government cannot avoid blame for its inability, as 100% shareholder, to ensure modernisation during its term of office.
But there are also fundamental structural issues which need to be resolved urgently for Royal Mail to survive. These were addressed in the recent Postal Services Bill which provided for a new regulatory regime, a resolution to the huge pension deficit and a mechanism to attract outside investment in the form of part privatisation.
We offered the government our support for the Bill and aided its passage through the Lords. Despite this, in the face of the opposition of some 150 Labour backbenchers and the threat of the CWU stopping its payments to Labour, the government pulled the Bill for political reasons. Even worse, they have offered no new alternative to save Royal Mail from further decline. This represents a huge government cop-out to the unions and the left and a lack of leadership from the Prime Minister.
The government maintains that the strike’s modernisation issues are to be detached from the Bill’s structural issues; so that they can avoid responsibility for the strike. But having secured their “victory” over the government, why did the unions start their local strikes just hours after Lord Mandelson announced he was pulling the Bill? The fact is that once government showed itself to be weak and ineffectual the unions simply stepped into the policy void with their demands against modernisation.
As we have consistently been maintaining since that time; Conservatives wish to secure a sustainable postal service for the future. We still believe that the best way to do this is to follow Richard Hooper’s proposals, which were the essence of the Postal Services Bill. This will resolve the company’s structural problems and enable a sensible injection of private capital and expertise into the Royal Mail. As part of this reform, we would want to ensure that postal workers can participate in employee share ownership.
Of course, if the government continues to abdicate its responsibility to the Royal Mail, to its staff and its customers, if elected, we will bring forward the Bill ourselves.
( 11 comments ) Tags: CWU, Postal Services Bill, Royal Mail, strike, unions
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Comment by B Smith on October 23, 2009 at 3:53 pm
I do not believe the Postal Services Bill addresses the core issues. Being retired, I am often in my garden when the local postman calls and we often ‘pass the time of day’. During the last three years a succession of postman have been employed employed on this round, all totally demoralised by their management and at a loss as to why the most senior management, who they say know nothing about their business, are being employed on unbelievably high remuneration packages, to destroy their current wages and future pensions.
The sad scenario is typical of what has happened in British Industry over recent decades. Unless and until people understand that any business can only survive and prosper through the expansion and retention of profitable customers, sadly the State will have to continue to subsidise losses through taxpayers money. It is my opinion that the sooner Government fires the very top level of management, promotes the second tier, ensures that the new Business Plan is properly funded and then leaves the experienced operating team with 5 years to build the business, the better.
It is a sad fact that whilst the Japanese in this Country have demonstrated the incredible strength, learning skills and tenacity of the British worker, British management has failed in most areas areas of our society. Let me be clear, if the Conservative Party are invited to form the next Government, the best thing they could do is restore the moral of the British worker by making Management accountable for the succes of their enterprise. One area where an immediate impression could be made is by using the tax system to stop the 3 year term recycling of failed senior management by City headhunters.
Comment by Andrew Lang on October 23, 2009 at 3:55 pm
It is typical, the twice in my lifetime there has been a Labour government we end up in a shambles. Kow Towing to the unions, & the economy down the toilette.
The only people with the balls to deal with issues like the trades unions are Conservatives.
Comment by Sally Roberts on October 23, 2009 at 4:07 pm
Of course Labour are not capable of dealing with this issue properly! They are hardly going to stand up to over-mighty Union bosses when they are bankrolled by them!
Comment by steve clifford on October 24, 2009 at 2:31 am
I am a postman I am also a redundant mineworker. I have seen first hand the way in which thatcher obliterated our coal fields. are you intending to do the same to the post? why not agree to sit down with the unions and thrash out a way forward before you are voted into power, show a caring side for the worker as well as your favourite.. the businessman
Comment by Ben Coe on October 24, 2009 at 5:33 pm
Isn’t one of the biggest problems faced by Royal Mail is its pension black hole. The cause of the pension black hole is a decade plus pension contribution holiday which was started by the Conservative Party.
It is hilarious to see the way you guys are trying to disown the products of your past policies. All you really seem to want to do is privatise every thing so that you can give more of our taxes to your big business friends.
Pressumably they in turn will give more money to your party.
Comment by Ben Coe on October 24, 2009 at 5:37 pm
I also agree with the comments above by B Smith. The more egalitarian approach of the Japese has built a successful motor industry in this country using British Workers. The issue is with the owners and managers of British Industry.
Comment by G Powell on October 29, 2009 at 12:03 pm
I hope the Conservatives take tough action on Royal Mail. Isn’t it about time someone with some balls actually enforces a law to stop this beaucratic inefficient giant selfishly calling strikes affecting other people just because of modernisation, or whatever they are whining about now!
Put simply, unions need to be put in place, but equally the management from operational to strategic levels need to have their terms and condtions, especially their huge salaries and bonuses reveiwed as well, to reduce the resentment felt by people at the lower end of the spectrum.
I spent some time working for the Highways Agency and the people there are pretty much the same. Lazy and always thinking they deserved more. I was a HGV driver and a cone dropper at the time. The management were no better and often resented their superiors. I believe this culture is in all public service organisations. The Government central and local, Royal Mail, Highways Agency etc.
Most of the problems faced in this country are so simple to solve, yet due to weak individuals in Government and people on the take, we never seem capable of solving them.
When a chief executive, who is still an employee, not an owner or founder of a company, earns obscene amounts of money, you can understand why people at lower levels feel resentment when they do not earn more. Equally, people at the lower end need to stop whining and get another job if they can’t stand it!
Comment by ralph mchendry on October 30, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Do we really expect Gordon Brown, and the combined forces of Labour Incompetents, to be able to manage this event? Winnie The Pooh and his mates are more able. How about asking management to cooperate with a referral to ACAS? Or maybe Mandelson is pulling Gordon’s balls.
Comment by Wilf Austin on October 31, 2009 at 6:34 pm
We know they are rubbish. Are we showing a forcefull, credible and confident
Comment by Wilf Austin on October 31, 2009 at 6:35 pm
we know they are rubbish. Are we showing a forcefull, credible and confident alternative