Taken for granted

Unite’s members working for Parcelforce overwhelmingly rejected a pay offer that management went ahead with, prompting the union today (March 6) to warn the courier company that it risks inciting industrial action.

 
The bosses of Parcelforce, a subsidiary of the Royal Mail, implemented a paltry 2.8 per cent pay rise backdated to July 2014, following a pay review.

 
Unite CMA officer Brian Scott argued that the Parcelforce members’ pay is deeply unfair.

 
“Unite members at Parcelforce deserve and expect the same as their colleagues in Royal Mail and that has just not happened,” he said. “This demonstrates a contempt for workers and Unite members.”

 
“We now have no alternative but to seek a ballot for a work to rule,” he added. “There’s no doubt this action will have a significant impact on Parcelforce customers.”

 
Scott asserted that the courier workers’ hard work has gone unrewarded for far too long.

 
“Unite members work more than their normal hours each day and they do so as a commitment to the company and to its customers,” he said. “Our members now feel they are being taken for granted and, indeed, bullied by the management to accept this deal.

 
“We asked the company for an urgent meeting once members decided to throw out the pay offer, but they did not even bother to respond before rushing to enforce this paltry pay offer,” he added.

 
“We call on bosses to get round the negotiating table with us now in order to resolve this dispute and get a fair deal for hardworking employees who deliver for this company day-in and day-out.”