‘Disgraceful’ Royal Mail bosses’ latest CWU threat exposes them as shower of self-serving sh*ts

CWU head Dave Ward, the Royal Mail logo and its boss Simon Thompson


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The dispute between the Communication Workers Union (CWU) and Royal Mail has entered a bizarre parallel universe. The company has threatened that it might have to make itself bust if the CWU’s industrial action doesn’t stop, and a deal with the union isn’t reached. Predictably, people have slammed the move as “disgraceful” and “appalling”, and said that it’s now time the government renationalises Royal Mail.

Royal Mail: utterly desperate move against the CWU

The Canary has extensively covered the ongoing dispute between the CWU workers and Royal Mail bosses. The company has already acted pretty badly – like its boss Simon Thompson telling a load of untruths while giving evidence to a parliamentary committee. However, Royal Mail’s latest move takes the biscuit.

The Guardian reported that bosses have threatened to declare the company insolvent. It noted that:

Royal Mail is on course to make operating losses of £350m-£400m this year, its parent – the recently renamed International Distributions Systems (IDS) – has previously said.

Bear in mind these losses come after several years of profits, as well as hefty dividend payments to shareholders – as Labour MP Cat Smith pointed out in parliament:

Yet still, Royal Mail bosses are now threatening the nuclear option. As the Guardian noted:

It is thought the boards of Royal Mail and IDS still regard a negotiated settlement as the preferred way out of crisis, but a special administration under the Postal Act has been explored. This would mean declaring the business insolvent and unable to pay its dues, raising the possibility of more job losses among its 140,000 employees. Approval would be needed from the government.

So, the CWU has responded – and it and its general secretary Dave Ward are furious.

‘Appalling’? Maybe it’s time to renationalise the postal service

Ward said in a video statement that:

The position that we’ve reached on their finances is down to the company and the way that they’ve dealt with this dispute right from the start

For example, as the Canary previously reported that Royal Mail bosses have rolled out redundancies during the course of the dispute,  taken legal action to try to stop strikes, and tabled derisory pay offers.

Meanwhile, people reacted angrily to the news on social media.

Labour MP Kate Osborne branded Royal Mail’s actions “appalling” and “disgraceful”:

Journalist Mary O’Hara pointed out that this is what happens when governments’ privatise key industries:

Meanwhile, other people were saying it was time for the government to renationalise the Royal Mail (an unlikely scenario):

A shower of self-serving shits

Ward summed up by saying:

the greatest risk of all is that we actually let them destroy this industry and destroy these jobs.

And went on:

at the moment it’s important that that pressure goes back onto Royal Mail

It beggars belief that the bosses at Royal Mail would literally threaten to let the company go bust just so they didn’t have to pay workers fairly. However, that is exactly where the dispute with the CWU is at.

This shows, in part, just how effective the union’s campaign has been: bosses, like the cornered rats they are, are so entrenched in their position that they’d prefer to see the company collapse than give in to workers.

Moreover, though, and it shows that those at the top of Royal Mail have no idea how to run a business – nor how to manage a workforce.

Crucially, it also shows what a shower of self-serving shits these odious capitalists really are.

Featured image via Sky News – YouTube and CWU Live – YouTube

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  • Show Comments

    1. Their actions say all we need to know about Royal Mail bosses.
      It’s nor for me to tell the union how to run their dispute.
      One solution may be.
      Royal Mail declares themselves bust.
      Government buys it back for £1.
      Comes to a responsible settlement with CWU.
      Ensures that everyone’s pensions are protected.

      It’s not so simple.
      BUT
      There is a ring of common sense about it.

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    2. ‘Disgraceful’ Royal Mail bosses’ latest CWU threat exposes them as shower of self-serving sh*ts.
      ***
      The Guardian reported that bosses have threatened to declare the company insolvent.
      **
      May be a bigger picture going on here with Tory Govt interference,
      What the P.O. Workers should be asking what strings are the Tory Govt Sunak is pulling of the dodgy bosses of P.O not paying up now.
      **
      Do remember P.O. workers and voters in May 2023 Cllr election postal voter maybe effected by strikes so this will benefit Tory Cllr maybe in local area by not getting voters back to be counted.
      **
      So as a voter I will ask Sunak. Hunt this question
      Q–Are you Sunak. Hunt the puppet masters be hide P.O.
      bosses NOT paying the staff wages increase NOW Y-N?
      **
      We could also ask Sunak. Hunt and Tory M.P. alike
      Q– Have you made any dodgy deal to reduces that cash payment payouts to the X P.O staff from P.O Bosses to the staff that were wrongly put in prison and badly treated them Y.N?
      **
      We know we cannot trust Tory party now voters so if I was a P.O. staff members seeking a pay rise I would ask my UNION to seek clarity of what Sunak Tory Gvot involvement his with P.O Bosses,
      also, if they go into Insolvency will we U.K. Taxpayer have to pay up any of our public cash while the P.O Bosses runoff with the firms cash Sunak. Hunt and all retire on it living P.O staff in the C**p Y-N?

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      1. ‘The Post Office has a single shareholder, the British Government’. Therefore it would seem very likely ‘the shareholder’ had and would want to have their input just as shareholders do in any other company with shareholders.

        Whenever the Post Office is mentioned one can’t forget the scandalous, disgraceful unjust accusations of fraud upon innocent PO staff put through harrowing investigations all caused, as it turned out, erroneously through a faulty computer system. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Post_Office_scandal

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    3. Underlying this is the principle which came to the fore in the 1980s and which is now treated as ‘gospel’ – ‘maximising shareholder return’.

      This has now become the principal criterion by which all non public businesses are run. It is not about quality of products or services. It is not about making a reasonable return and providing good wages and conditions for all employees, including senior management. It is about ‘driving down costs’ to make profits as high as possible for shareholders. ‘Driving down costs’ entails paying low wages, reducing staff, cutting corners, ‘slashing red tape’.

      Viable businesses can be run using a different paradigm.

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      1. You do understand that you are describing a fundamental principle of capitalism? There can be no kind, caring form that willingly provides those good wages and conditions. Employers are the class enemies of employers; trade unions generally act as the wages police for employers, damping down worker uprisings against the many ways they are continually and brutally exploited. There is capitalism, which is barbarism; or there is socialism, which is humanism. There is no middle ground, no Third Way. Make your choice and choose your side.

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