Postal worker of the Royal Mail Group on a delivery tour in Manchester, UK
Paul Thomas Bloomberg | Getty Images
Royal Mail It revealed plans on Friday to cut up to 6,000 jobs by next summer after a summer of strikes by… Postal workers in the UK
“We will begin a business rights consultation process in response to the impact of the industrial strike, delays in delivering agreed productivity improvements and reduced parcel volumes,” the parent group of Royal Mail, recently renamed International Distribution ServicesHe said in a statement.
“Based on current estimates, a surplus of 5,000 to 6,000 may be needed by the end of August 2023.”
The group on Friday reported a half-year adjusted operating loss of 219 million pounds ($247.2 million), citing nearly 70 million pounds from a direct negative impact from three days of postal workers strikes.
CNBC reported last week that the leaders Communications Workers’ Union (CWU) held talks with Royal Mail chiefsincluding CEO Simon Thompson, as the company looks to avoid another 16 days of an industrial strike threatened by the union.
The Royal Mail said its financial position had deteriorated due to “a combination of the impact of the industrial conflict, the inability to deliver the joint productivity improvements agreed with the CWU under the Pathway to Change agreement, and ongoing macroeconomic headwinds.”
It now expects to incur full-year operating losses estimated at around £350m, including “the direct and immediate impact of the eight days of industrial strike that has occurred or has been notified to Royal Mail”.
In a statement Friday, the CWU said Royal Mail’s financial problems were the result of “gross mismanagement and a failed agenda of ending daily deliveries, settling terms, payment and terms for wholesale mail workers, and transforming Royal Mail into a gig economy-style courier.”
CWU Secretary General Dave Ward has urged the company to reform its business plan and build on its “competitive advantage” in offering up to 32 million titles across the UK.
“This ad ransoms postal workers for taking legal industrial action against a commercial approach that is not in the interest of workers, customers or the future of Royal Mail. This is not a way to build a business,” Ward said.
