ROYAL Mail workers will be staging a walkout in the coming weeks due to a long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions.
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) confirmed that its members will take action throughout December and in the run-up to Christmas. According to the union, members will take industrial action on the following dates: December 1, December 9, December 11, December 14, December 15, December 23, and December 24.
Cllr Donal O’Cofaigh of the Cross-Community Labour Alternative said it was time postal workers got a decent wage that reflected the work they did.
“Royal Mail has made huge profits over the last few years and it’s a disgrace that they are treating their workers this way,” he explained.
“The blame for the disruption this causes lies totally with management. They sought to impose a very low pay increase, way below inflation, which means postal workers’ incomes are falling quite substantially this year.
“It’s essential they get a decent wage to help attract more workers to the sector and ensure that the service continues.”
Members of the CWU have already staged a series of strikes, with the latest taking place in the past week on two of the busiest online shopping days of the year, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
It is expected that the strikes will result in disruption to the Royal Mail’s services across the festive period.
Cllr O’Cofaigh agreed that the industrial action will cause problems over Christmas, but local people would understand it and see the bigger picture.
“People recognise that we’re living in tough times and working-class people are increasingly showing solidarity with workers. Hopefully, they will receive a decent pay increase and pave the way for many other workers in the same position,” he said.
The union and Royal Mail have agreed to enter a period of “intense negotiations” in an attempt to resolve a long-running dispute, and the union has highlighted it will continue to engage with the company until an appropriate deal is met.
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