Richard Burden MP: Fighting for a fair deal for everyone in Birmingham Northfield

22 October 2009

Saving Royal Mail -

Along with over 50 other people from across civil society I have today signed a statement organised by the pressure group Compass which calls on the government to refer the Royal Mail dispute to ACAS and establish an independent review.

The statement says:

The Royal Mail is a much loved public institution. It faces great challenges because of new technology and market liberalisation but has a talented and committed workforce and the backing of the public. Last year it made a huge profit.

But something is going badly wrong. The current dispute looks as if it could drag the whole organisation down. Both sides, the management and the union, seem to be unintentionally on a course of mutually assured destruction. If the management think they can ‘win' by defeating the moral voice of the workers then they know nothing about running a people centred business. If the union thinks it can carry on regardless in the face of new pressures and new technology then they equally consign themselves to the history books. We know neither side wants this but they need help.

This is where the government comes in. The post office is an essential publicly owned utility and it is the government's duty to ensure it is run well. At the moment it looks as though they are sulking on the side lines because they couldn't get their part-privatisation through and have now washed their hands of the whole thing. They need to rise to the challenge of creating a new space in which the future of the Royal Mail can be discussed and decided by all the key stakeholders.

But it means starting with a blank sheet of paper and unlocking the experiences, talents and commitment of all the workers, management and users of the post. Other public services have been transformed by this approach. It is time for Royal Mail to go through a thorough independent review with both sides committed to implementing the outcomes of such a process - for the very good reason that they will be involved every step of the way.

Royal Mail will either quickly decline with the union and management locked into a war that neither side can win or the management will have to concede the union has a positive part to play in restructuring the organisation while the union recognises that modernisation will mean pain and sacrifice but will ultimately secure the best interests of its members. Restructuring would include the formation of a new Post Bank for cheaper loans and lower charges, a financial provider in every community that everyone can trust.

The Royal Mail is treasured in part because it is a place where we are all equal - all treated the same. Everyone pays the same price and everyone gets the same service - we want this to remain.

We therefore call on the government to do two things. In the short term to stop the strike and get both sides talking they must immediately call in ACAS the independent arbitration service. For the longer term, to facilitate modernisation, which can only come from the co-operation of all sides, they must bring in sympathetic advisers to run a four month process which will lead to public recommendations on how the organisation should be structured and run, which reconciles the needs of the public, the demands on the management and the interests of the people who work for Royal Mail. We call on the management and union to wholeheartedly back this move and engage fully in it. If any stakeholder refuses this reasonable proposal then they stand to lose forever the backing of the public.

It won't be easy and time is running out. There are a host of positive ideas about how to run the Royal Mail in a more efficient, productive and fair way. It's the government's job to create the opportunity to make it happen.