On Tuesday 27th September, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) representing Royal Mail workers announced a further 19 days of strike action.
The union has stated that these new strike days represent the anger that workers are currently feeling towards the Royal Mail Group and their lack of constructive response to their demands.
The union has already been on strike for 3 days throughout August and September with 2 more scheduled for Friday 30th September and Saturday 1st October.
Currently, the strikes are set to occur during peak periods including Black Friday (25thNovember) and Cyber Monday (28th November), following a breakdown of talks.
What dates are workers planning to strike?
All workers who collect, sort, and deliver letters and parcels will go on strike on the following dates:
- Friday 30th September 2022
- Saturday 1st October 2022
- Thursday 13th October 2022
- Thursday 20th October 2022
- Tuesday 25th October 2022
- Monday 28th November 2022
Just processing, distribution, international collections and admin workers:
- Thursday 3rd November 2022
- Wednesday 9th November 2022
- Tuesday 15th November 2022
- Thursday 24th November 2022
- Thursday 1st December 2022
Just delivery workers:
- Friday 4th November 2022
- Thursday 10th November 2022
- Wednesday 16th November 2022
- Friday 25th November 2022
- Friday 2nd December 2022
Just network workers:
- Wednesday 2nd November 2022
- Tuesday 8th November 2022
- Monday 14th November 2022
- Wednesday 23rd November 2022
- Wednesday 30th November 2022
Despite Royal Mail seeking to reduce the impact of the strikes, disruption will be experienced due to the number of strike days. Read our article on how best to prepare for the Royal Mail Strikes.
What items will be prioritised?
· Special delivery and Tracked24
· Covid test kits and medical prescriptions
What is currently happening regarding the talks?
The union has stated that it does not want to resort to striking and they hope Royal Mail will respond to their demands before these occur.
In response, Royal Mail has highlighted that the union has ignored their request to include ACAS (a non-departmental public body of the government that acts as a third party to facilitate communication and resolutions). It argues that this latest announcement is adding to the disruption as opposed to a resolution.
As always, we will inform our clients of any disruption that may affect them here at MHI and therefore minimise the impact had on their businesses.
Our recommendations
· Send mail campaigns sooner – why not choose an omnichannel approach? Send a DM in the post early highlighting your Black Friday offers and then follow up with an email
· Warn customers – manage the expectations of your customers by making them aware that delivery may take slightly longer due to strike action. Ensure that you let them know well in advance and through more than one channel. This way it is more likely that they will see the communication
· Keep up to date with the latest news on the matter – previously strikes have been called off at the last minute. Make sure you are on top of what is happening to plan and prepare as best you can
· Contact your account manager for advice – Every business and item is unique with different delivery needs. Drop us an email and we’ll see if there is anything we can do to help minimise disruption
