Thousands of British postal workers start strike over wages

Royal Mail has said it is relying on a skeleton staff to deliver only “essential items” after 115,000 postal workers went on strike in year’s biggest industrial action so far.

The 500-year-old postal service’s employees are striking on Friday, Wednesday next week and 8 and 9 September in a dispute over pay and working practices.

Royal Mail workers across Great Britain demonstrated on Friday morning, with picket lines in Dunfermline, Hull and Preston among other places.

Royal Mail, which employs 140,000 staff including managers, has offered workers a 2% pay rise, backdated to April, and further benefits equivalent to a 3.5% increase if they agree to changes in working practices. Executives say the changes are needed in order to grow Royal Mail’s parcels business in the face of intense competition from rivals including Amazon and DPD.

The CWU argues that staff should receive a pay rise in line with inflation in recognition of their work delivering post during the coronavirus pandemic.