The involvement of conciliation service Acas in the Royal Mail dispute over pay and working conditions hinges on the Communication Workers Union (CWU) calling off “unjustified” industrial action, Royal Mail has said.
Dave Ward, deputy general at the CWU, wrote to Acas yesterday (22 October) to request its involvement in the dispute, and added in a statement that the union had “nothing to hide”.
“Royal Mail has been putting out misinformation about documentation over the past few days,” the union leader said. “Let’s take all that documentation to Acas where it can be fairly examined. The CWU has nothing to hide.”
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But Royal Mail has refused to enter into negotiations with Acas until the union and workers put an end to the current series of planned strikes, which are taking place today and are set to continue next week.
A spokesman for Royal Mail told Personnel Today: “We are happy to go to Acas, but first the unions need to call off the unjustified strike action that is damaging the service Royal Mail offers its customers. Call off the strikes, and we’ll go to Acas to discuss the future of the business.”
