Postal Disruption - An Post Deplores Union Action

22 March 2004

Bray, Kells, Carrickmacross, Navan
Castleblayney, Tuam, Drogheda, Wicklow,
Dundalk, Greystones

Please note that mail posted in or to the Galway Postal Area remains subject to serious delay.

Both inbound and outbound international mail is also affected and all customers are advised not to post to any international destination.

An Post is conscious of the serious inconvenience that this industrial action will cause to you and regret that we cannot provide normal service until further notice.

In order to keep you informed of developments as they arise, we will be placing advertisements in national newspapers and regularly updating our website at www.anpost.ie. You can also call our Customer Services Centre on 1850 57 58 59.

An Post regrets the serious disruption in postal services resulting from industrial action taken by the Communications Workers Union at the Dublin Mails Centre.

The union instruction to its members not to do work which, for more than a year, has been part of their normal duties and which is covered by agreement between the union and management is unacceptable.

An Post deplores the union action which is utterly unjustified and will further damage the company which lost €40 million in 2003. In pressurising the company to meet national pay awards, it is in breach of Sustaining Progress.

The implementation of major cost savings throughout the organisation, by way of an agreed change programme, is critical to the achievement of An Post’s objective of reaching break-even by the end of 2005.

Given the scale of its financial difficulties, the company is unable to pay the terms of Sustaining Progress and can do so only when there is a clear path to achieving financial stability, a key element of which would be provided by the outcome of the change negotiations.

The Company’s Strategic Recovery Plan set out the company proposals which would meet its urgent needs to reduce costs and improve its efficiency. The plan was the basis for discussions with the CWU in November.

The company has urged the union to return to the productivity discussions that it abandoned in December. An Post wants to pay Sustaining Progress and will do so as well as offering significant payment for genuine productivity.

An Post is conscious of the serious inconvenience caused by this disruption but regrets that due to the industrial action by the CWU, it cannot provide normal service until further notice.
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