Postal
workers
hit back
at
speed-up
BY GARTH FRANKLAND ATTACKS on working conditions and on spread from one public service and nationalised industry another, often as a preliminary to privatisation. In April the Post Office management in Leeds opened up the latest round. The result almost brought on a national strike.
Post Office management tried to cut staff hours worked from 24,500 to 15,500. They later upped this target to 19,500. In response sorting office workers and delivery workers did the basic 43 hours, effectively banning overtime.
Chaos ensued. Post office boxes were sealed up and 720 casuals were taken on as scabs. Staff hours rose by an extra 30,000. Communication Workers known criminals were recruited and no proper training was given. The result was increased backlog many items of mail going missing.
Leeds was the pilot study for an examination of productivity staffing levels which the Post Office and the Union of Communication Workers were discussing. Union's national officials and the management in Leeds had had many meetings over the lasst years prepare the scheme. The workstudy and stop watch teams were allowed to operate with the union's national approval. Harry Jones, the UCW's national officer, played a day-to-day role in preparing productivity deal.
Up to the scheme being introduced the Union had exercised powerful local control over overtime worked and over rotas. All this was to go. Instead work schedules based on a time and motion survey — so detailed that it eliminated thinking time in the mail sort operation — were introduced.
jobs have to was to be broken.
course there would be little or no overtime, combined with a possibility of split shifts.
People night shift were suddenly to be put on nights without consultation.
arangement of hours was to be week.
Union of said that hundred per cent successful.
and
"oath allegiance"
and to seek an injunction
The to vicious workers in place of overtime.
the
Viewpoint.
Leeds postal workers on picket line
The effective power of the union members
It be was to replaced by speed up. The sweetener was an offer of up to £20 per week. Of who had never worked show
0f
Pare i she even new hours on Saturday morning, so that workers would only have 1 night off a
After a secret ballot the Union staged a 24 hour stoppage. It was a management refused to accept the workers back unless they signed an
2,000
The refused, a number were suspended, and the strike continued. The UCW took the Post Office to the High Court so that its
"The remarkable thing about the strike was the commitment of the postal workers in West Yorkshire. The Management precipitated the all-out strike by suspending postmen who wouldn' ross the picket lines in Leeds. Their aim is to introduce casual
"Postal workers will have to wear plastic tags where all clocking on and clocking off times for breaks, etc., are recorded by supervisors. Management locked workers in the GPO in
Iuddersfield and threatened us with emergency powers under the
Official Secrets Act to get the Post out. Local postal workers feel betrayed by the union leaders who have given the Post Ottice what they want; the right to change rosters when they choose and to hire and fire casual workers at will.
Postal Worker, Huddersfield GPO, Supporter of Socialist
Socialist Viewpoint No. 13 July 1986 p10 could return. The High refused the injunction, losing the union members a vital 24 hours to spread the strike. Workers joined the strike, paralysing the mail throughout Yorkshire. There was no clear lead on spreading the strike from the national leadership because of the Union of Communication holding their national conference in Bournemouth during this vital week it Executive Council to stich up a deal behind the backs of the members.
As the strike was extended some of the casuals joined it. The government privatisation. The General Secretary of the Union, Alan Tuffin, was under enormous pressure to negotiate a compromise with the Post Office before the strike became national.
So were the Post Office, who are