'Patchy' support for postal strike
3:41pm Friday 13th July 2007 in Latest News
Royal Mail says support for a postal strike which began last night has been "extremely patchy".
The one-day strike, organised after a deadlock in the dispute over pay and working practices, has hit deliveries today.
However, Royal Mail says in a statement the percentage of people turning up at work today has ranged from 5 per cent to more than 60 per cent.
The network of 14,220 post office have also operated normally, says Royal Mail.
However, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) says mail has come to a standstill and postal workers had overwelmingly supported the action.
It claims support was at 99 per cent in some big cities.
The one-day strike comes after Royal Mail's management and officials from the CWU failed to reach an agreement.
Royal Mail has offered its 127,000 postal workers a 2.5 per cent pay increase, performance linked bonuses and other deals, but this has been rejected.
The company also has modernisation plans to compete with private sector rivals in the business mail market.
The CWU is asking for a pay rise in line with inflation and claims the modernisation programme would mean the loss of some 40,000 jobs.
Did you get any post today? What do you think of the strike? Add your comment below.
