CWU’s big week - Westminster & Wales face off on agency staff - protesters in court
27 June - 3 July 2022
It was a massive week for the Communication Workers Union (CWU). The union got the results of its BT Group ballots, which with the exception of EE where it fell short by just eight votes, gave it a substantial mandate for strike action across the telecoms group.
It also ramped up its campaign at Royal Mail and Post Offices. As well as announcing strikes for some workers in July, the union started balloting 115,000 members at Royal Mail. As far as I can tell, this is the biggest vote on industrial action since Unison’s unsuccessful ballot of local government members at the start of the year.
With that in mind, It’s worth reading this wide-ranging interview where CWU General Secretary Dave Ward says unions have to “stop the squabbling over members” and push “common bargaining agendas across the economy”. He also calls for deeper and structured links between unions and community organisations.
On the policy front, government attacks on the right to strike continue and a possible fight is emerging between Westminster and the Welsh government, with the latter vowing to defend its strike devolved laws.
And the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, which many fear will limit the right to protest, also came into force last Tuesday. The following day, we got an insight of how police were already using their existing powers prior to the introduction of the Act, as three workers were in court charged with “blocking” lorries at the Wealden bin workers strike last May.
DISPUTES
CWU’s BT ballot smashes (some) thresholds: Tens of thousands of workers across BT Group have voted in favour of strike action, CWU says. Workers at Openreach and BT have secured strike mandates, while workers at EE returned a 95% vote in favour of action, but fell 0.03% short of the turnout threshold set by the Trade Union Act 2016. The union says this is the first time call centre workers vote for a national strike.
Postal triple whammy: Hundreds of Post Office workers will be striking in July in separate disputes over pay. Workers at 114 Crown Post Offices will strike on 11 July, while cash and valuables in transit, cash processing and admin staff working across 11,500 post offices will walk out on 14 July, CWU says. Last week, The CWU also began balloting 115,000 members who work at Royal Mail.
Around 2,400 Royal Mail managers could also go on strike after they returned an 86% vote in favour of strike action in response to company plans that threaten jobs and conditions, Unite says.
UCU goes for aggregated ballot: UCU will launch a national aggregated ballot in late summer, with strikes expected in November, the union says. This is the first time in the recent pensions or “four fights” disputes that the ballot is aggregated. This means that if the total vote and turnout is above 50% nation-wide, then all universities will have a strike mandate. If it is below, none of the universities, even those that had a turnout above the 50% threshold, will be able to strike.
Firefighters reject pay deal: The Fire Brigade Union’s (FBU) executive council is recommending firefighters reject the 2% pay deal and does not rule out industrial action if the pay offer is not improved, the union says.
Strike ballot at Europe’s biggest soft drinks plant: Coca Cola workers are preparing an industrial action ballot at the company’s site in Wakefield, which is the biggest soft drinks plant in Europe, Unite says.
Bexley refuse workers back to the picket lines: More than 100 Bexley refuse workers employed by Countrystyle Recycling will begin a two-week strike on 12 July, following a below-inflation pay deal. Unite says. This will be the second set of strikes by these workers, who won improved pay and sick pay in 2021 at the beginning of the most recent wave of strike action by council cleansing workers across the UK.
Harlow strike mandate: Harlow refuse workers have voted to strike in a dispute over pay with their employer, Veolia, Unison says.
Stagecoach pay offer voted down: Stagecoach Merseyside drivers are going on strike today after they voted down a pay offer by the company, Unite says.
Pub landlord assault: The landlord of the Saint James Tavern pub in Brighton physically assaulted a worker during a strike, UVW says.
Arriva bus dispute suspended: Arriva Yorkshire bus strikes have been suspended after the fourth week, so workers can be ballotted on a new pay offer, Unite says.
FCA action on hold: FCA workers pause their industrial action after the company puts union recognition “back on the table” as part of the regulator’s ‘Colleague Voice’ exercise, the Unite FCA branch says.
Avanti workers vote to strike: Avanti West Coast workers in “station grades” have voted for strike action in a dispute over pay, job security and conditions, the TSSA says. The union is also balloting members at Network rail and train companies across England.
Great Anglia strike: Aslef members working for Greater Anglia were on strike on Saturday, the BBC reports. Tramlink workers in Croydon were also on strike last week, Aslef says.
PAY, POLICY AND POLITICS
Wales to resist changes to union law: Wales’ first minister Mark Drakeford has vowed to “resist” a proposal by the UK government to repeal a Senedd law banning agency workers filling in for striking workers, the BBC reports.
Jersey minimum wage boost push: Caritas Jersey and the Reform Jersey party are calling for the minimum wage on the island to be increased to match the living wage, currently at £11.27, by the end of the States term (2026), ITV reports.
Demands of £10.50 for care staff: The NHS Confederation has written to the prime minister urging the government to implement a £10.50 minimum wage for care workers to address the continuing hemorrhaging of staff, Personnel Today reports.
Charity doesn’t pay: One in seven charity workers are paid below the real living wage (£9.90 per hour nationally and £11.50 in London), according to a report by the Living Wage Foundation.
LEGAL
Picketers plead not guilty: Three GMB union members have pleaded not guilty to “blocking” bin lorries during the Wealden bin strike earlier this year, The Argus reports. They will appear for trial at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on 16 November.
Transgender pronoun case: A doctor who was fired by the DWP for refusing to use transgender patients’ names and preferred pronouns has los his appeal of an employment tribunal ruling, Personnel Today reports. The Employment Appeal Tribunal found that while his beliefs about transgenderism were protected under the Equality Act 2010, the measures adopted by his employer were necessary and proportionate to meet the needs of “potentially vulnerable service users”.
Air Force base has state immunity: An Employment Appeal Tribunal judge has ruled that two civilian employees of the United States Air Force working on bases in the UK are unable to raise discrimination claims in the Employment Tribunal because of “state immunity”, Scottish Legal News reports.
Pregnancy scan case: A factory worker has been awarded £8,000 after being sacked for taking a day off to go with his pregnant partner for a hospital scan, the Mirror reports.
Pregnancy discmrination claim: A care home cleaner has won nearly £25,000 in a pregnancy discrimnation claim, the Mirror reports.
MODERN SLAVERY
University slavery route: Suspected victims brought to Britain on student visas have vanished from their courses and have been found working in exploitatie conditions, The Observer reports.
GIG ECONOMY
Workers sacked after company GPS failures: Stuart delivery workers have been fired after the company’s GPS system sent them on dangerous routes or mislocated them, the Observer reports. In a message sent to a courier, a Stuart senior manager said they were aware that their GPS system was “not great” and that the company stopped using Google Maps because the price of the service had increased.
DISCRIMINATION
Russians refused farm work: Providers that secure farm workers for the UK’s seasonal worker scheme are shunning applicants from Russia, even after initially approving their applications, Bloomberg reports. Recruiters are withdrawing certificates of sponsorship which allow Russians to apply for visas, while their valid applications are pending with the Home Office.
WINS
Scandinavian cabin crew win: CAE Crewing Services Ltd staff on the SAS Connect contract have secured a phased 18% pay increase between now and March 2023, Unite says. The workers will also receive a one off £1,200 summer bonus for 2022, increases in overnight rates and other pay elements.
Cleaners win 16% pay raise: Cleaners at the Riverside Quarter luxury residence in Wandsworth have won a 16% pay increase and improved sick pay after voting for strike action, UVW says.
Hinkley point victory: Sheet metal workers and platers working for Darchem Engineering on Hinkley Point power plant project have won a £1.25 per hour increase to their pay, the equivalent of an 8.5% rise, after taking strike action, Unite says.The company also agreed to pay two bonuses, of £930 and £1000.
Barclays cost of living raise: Barclays staff on grades BA1 to AVP have won an increase in their annual pensionable salary of £1,200, Unite says.
BEIS workers win: Outsourced workers at the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have won a 7% pay rise backdated to 1 March, the PCS BEIS London & South says in a tweet.
CNH strike called off: CNH workers have called off their strike after securing a pay deal which will increase the salary of the lowest paid workers by £140 a week over two years, Unite says. The deal will improve the pay of 500 workers.
Fire and rehire stopped: Wiltshire traffic wardens have called off their strike after the council suspends its fire and rehire plans, GMB says.
Theatre allowance increased: The touring allowance for commercial theatre workers has increased from £265 to £300 a week, The Stage reports.
WHAT’S COMING UP
Ongoing: Coventry refuse workers on strike
4 July - Merseyside bus strike
4 July - 22 July (Not continuous): Criminal Barristers take industrial action
4 - 8 July: RMT AGM
4 - 8 July: CabAuto workers in West Midlands on strike
5, 10, 11 July: St Monica Trust workers on strike
8, 11, 28 & 29 July, & 26 & 30 August: CNH Industrial workers on strike in Basildon
9 July: Durham Miners’ Gala
11 July: Crown Post Office workers on strike
14 July: Post Office cash and valuables in transit, cash processing and admin staff on strike
15 - 17 July: Tolpuddle Martyrs' Festival
16 - 18 July, 19 July: Budweiser workers on strike
19 July: Royal Mail strike ballot result
26 July: End of Unison Scotland, Unite and GMB local government strike ballot
29 - 31 July: UK Hazards Conference
22 August: Deadline for Scottish government consultation on the extension of Transparency in Supply Chain legislation for Scottish public bodies
22 – 26 August, 30 August - 2 September, 5 September - 9 September: Richmond upon Thames College workers on strike
FEEDBACK
Did I miss anything? Email me on theweekinwork [at] gmail [dot] com.