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From The Socialist newspaper, 11 August 2005
Royal Mail announce redundancies
THE ANNOUNCEMENT this week that Royal Mail intends to get rid of another 30,000 jobs is depressingly familiar. This is on top of the 53,000 redundancies since 2000.
A postal worker
It seems that Allen Leighton is blaming this on Postcomm, the postal regulators, who disagree with Royal Mail's plan to increase the price of a first-class stamp from 30p to 48p. They believe that the increase should only be to 34p. Last month Leighton warned that this could result in up to 40,000 jobs going.
Postcomm hired a consultancy, LEGC, to look into Royal Mail's operations. Among other things they propose is a pay reduction - they say Royal Mail should start comparing staff pay to the private sector, rather than the public sector.
The initial response by our union, CWU, is that speculation about further job cuts was "extremely unsettling" for postal workers, and that members had worked hard to turn the company around in recent years.
The attacks on Royal Mail workers are part of the New Labour government's neo liberal attacks - rather than going along with "share in success" and other brown-nosing schemes, the CWU should be fighting these attacks on postal workers' pay and conditions.
- CWU lobby against postal privatisation. 7 September, 10am, DTI, 1-19 Victoria Street, London. Rally 12.30pm, Friends Meeting House, Euston.
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Finance appeal
The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.
The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.
The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.
- The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
- When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.
Inevitably, during the crisis we have not been able to sell the Socialist and raise funds in the ways we normally would.
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In The Socialist 11 August 2005:
Trade unions must mobilise against terrorism, racism and war
Dewsbury: Uniting and organising against racism
60 years after Hiroshima: Nuclear proliferation makes socialist change more urgent
Justice for Heathrow's Gate Gourmet workers
Firefighters defend life-saving services
Royal Mail announce redundancies
Northern Ireland after the IRA statement: Why the 'peace process' continues to flounder
Greek workers resist neo-liberal attacks
Union split reflects crisis in US labour
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