Royal Mail Strike: Sheffield postal workers join 'biggest strike of the summer' as 110,000 staff walk out

The walkout by members of the Communications Workers Union (CWU) began at 4.30am this morning (August 26) when most postal staff would normally be up and sorting the country’s deliveries.

The industrial action is across the service, from mail sorters to package handlers to door-to-door posties, and residents nationwide have been told not to expect Royal Mail deliveries at all today.

In Sheffield, as many as 15 picket lines were held at offices across the city, including the region-serving Mail Centre on Brightside Lane as well as on Penistone Road, Barnsley Road, Woodseats Road and Tapton Hill.

The dispute today is in protest of a two per cent pay rise that members say was “imposed” of staff, at a time when inflation is forecast to pass 13 per cent later this year.

It comes after Royal Mail reported £758m annual profits in May, £400m of which was paid to shareholders.

CWU branch secretary Graham Clough called the firm's pay offer “derisory”.

He said: “This is not something that’s been taken lightly, but members feel strongly that we have no other option.

“Imposing a two per cent pay rise on people while giving a big payout of £400m to shareholders and bonuses of £2m to its executives is derisory.

“Our members know their worth. They risked their lives delivering during the pandemic and kept the nation running.

“When you’ve got people – not just postal workers – that are in work and using food banks it’s a sad indictment of the state of the country, and my heart goes out to anyone struggling at the moment.

“Food banks appear to be the fastest growing industry at the moment.”

At the picket line in Pond Street, over 60 postal workers were joined by members of the public outside the three gates of the Sheffield City Delivery Office.

Members were out at 4.30am, when they would normally start work

Workers told The Star that Royal Mail’s 3,000 managers have been offered £1,000 bonuses if they personally have 100 per cent attendance until the end of the strike period on October 31.

Still, staff claimed managers had crossed the picket line but were not working inside the offices.

Today’s strike over pay is separate to ongoing negotiations around potential changes to workers’ contracts, where Royal Mail are asking staff to handle later deliveries, work on Sundays and pay new-starter workers less.

If members agreed to these changes, the pay rise would increase to 5.5 per cent.

Other strike days have been called on August 31 and September 7 and 8.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said the business could not “cling to outdated working practices, ignoring technological advancements and pretending that Covid has not significantly changed what the public wants from Royal Mail”.

“While our competitors work seven days a week, delivering until 10pm to meet customer demand, the CWU want to work fewer hours, six days a week, starting and finishing earlier,” they added.

Chairman Keith Williams has previously claimed the firm is “losing £1m a day” as parcel volumes fall and efforts to modernise the business stall.