Chaos expected as postal workers to strike on Monday

CHAOS is expected in the postal service after postal workers announced last night they will begin strike action on Monday.

The Communications Workers Union (CWU) has agreed its members will not do overtime and that an all-out strike will take place at the GPO and other selected locations across the country.

An Post management condemned the action and said customers should "expect delays immediately" as postal services are so reliant on overtime.

The strike, they said, would affect all areas of the postal services and all parts of the country.

The strike was announced although talks between management and workers were continuing at the time through the National Implementation Body (NIB).

The dispute centres around the refusal by management to pay €60 million under the Sustaining Progress agreement unless new work practices endorsed by the Labour Court and including outsourcing are accepted by workers.

Postal workers claim services are being run into the ground by management.

Union members also want payments due before any work changes relating to overtime and route control are accepted.

CWU general secretary Steve Fitzpatrick said employees will work to ensure social welfare payments and pensions aren't interrupted.

"We have specifically chosen a nationwide overtime ban as our initial course of action to highlight the reliance placed on overtime by the company to simply keep the service operating as well as to expose the real impact that the recruitment ban has had on the postal service since it was introduced," he said.

Employers body IBEC described the strike as "irresponsible and unacceptable" and said the CWU should "face up to their responsibilities in delivering the pace and scale of change necessary to ensure the future viability of An Post".

Workers yesterday said they were shocked at the amounts of up to €86,500 some postmen will get for the year, stressing it was not commonplace.

Limerick postman Joseph O'Flaherty said: "How can we support our families? We get no overtime and are struggling. Some of us are on €320 a week. And if we get overtime, it's a flat rate €20 an hour."