The walkouts were organized by the Communications Workers Union amid a dispute with the company over pay and working conditions.
What dates are Royal Mail strikes?
The CWU is planning 10 days of strike action, meaning its 115,000 members will strike on the following dates:
Thursday, November 24 Friday, November 25 Wednesday, November 30 Thursday, December 1st Friday, December 9 Sunday, December 11 Wednesday, December 14 Thursday, December 15 Friday December 23rd Christmas Eve
Will postal strikes affect Christmas deliveries?
Yes. In particular, strikes on December 23 and Christmas Eve threaten to wreak particular havoc on delayed packages reaching millions of households. During the latest national strikes in August, the heavy representation of the CWU among staff meant that almost the entire postal network was crippled, with only the most essential services and special deliveries continuing.
What is the last date for sending Christmas cards and parcels via Royal Mail?
Royal Mail is urging customers to “allow sufficient time” to post items this year. If you want cards and gifts to arrive by Christmas Day, 2nd class items should be posted no later than December 19th, and 1st class should be sent no later than December 21st. Special deliveries and tracked guaranteed items should be shipped by December 22nd. Special deliveries with the company’s “Saturday Guarantee” can be shipped on December 23rd.
Why are Royal Mail workers taking industrial action?
The dispute between the postal service and the CWU, which represents more than 100,000 of Royal Mail’s 140,000 workers, centers on pay and conditions. In the wake of runaway inflation, the CWU argues the company’s postal workers deserve a pay rise to match price rises. UK inflation topped 11% last month, a 41-year high. They are also angry at changes to working conditions that Royal Mail bosses want to make, including a seven-day-a-week parcel service, reducing letter deliveries to five days, increased automation of sorting parcels and letters and later completion times for more deliveries The next day. Royal Mail says the company is losing £1m a day and that without radical change the business has no future. Bosses have threatened layoffs and possible liquidation of the business if the striking workers fail to stop.
What if I post internationally?
Then you should allow even more time. Royal Mail says mail to family and friends serving in the Armed Forces should be sent no later than December 2. For others who use International Economy Post, you have missed the shipping deadlines to the Far and Middle East, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa, Canada and the US via regular mail. The deadline for Cyprus, Eastern Europe, Greece, Iceland, Malta, Turkey was 25 November, while for Western Europe the items should have been sent by 28 November. Those using international standards or international standards tracking and signature services are too late for mail destined for British Virgin Islands, Dominica and Anguilla. But for everything else, you still have time. The deadline for Australia and New Zealand is December 1st, while for mainland China it is December 2nd, for the Caribbean it is December 5th, for Africa, the Middle East and Asia it is December 7th, for Cyprus and Malta it is December 8th, and for Eastern Europe and Turkey it is December 10th. For Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Poland, Sweden and the USA it is December 10, while for Western Europe it is December 12 and finally for Belgium, France and Luxembourg it is December 14. Train passengers’ travel plans will also be hit in the run-up to Christmas by planned train strikes.
