Plans by An Post to cut staff numbers and overtime costs drastically in its collection and delivery service have been overwhelmingly rejected by staff.
Of 4,315 members balloted by the Communications Workers' Union, only 195 supported management's reform proposals. They will now be referred to the Labour Court for adjudication next year, further delaying full implementation of a company recovery plan.
The ballot result, announced yesterday by the CWU, does not carry any threat of industrial action. CWU members had balloted separately in favour of a strike. However, following a 24-hour stoppage last week, the union said there will be no further disruption before Christmas.
The latest ballot concerned the outcome of seven months of negotiations between the company and the union at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC). From these, a set of draft proposals emerged, including a plan by the company to cut 1,450 collection and delivery jobs from the current total of 5,000. It also wants to reduce overtime levels and to do away with demarcation between postmen and women, post office clerks and postal sorters.
Management is also seeking full implementation of automated mail-sorting, the redesign of collection and delivery routes and "limited deployment" of owner-drivers in some rural areas. In return for these and other changes, staff would receive a 5.35 per cent pay increase in three phases, but only as changes were verified over a 30-month period.
The CWU told Mr Tom Pomphrett of the LRC, who chaired the negotiations this year, of the outcome of the ballot. In a statement, the union's national officer for the postal sector, Mr Seán McDonagh, said members had rejected management's proposals "in their entirety". He said none of the "serious gaps" between management and union positions had been bridged.
A spokesman for An Post said it had been agreed at the outset that matters would be "fast tracked" to the Labour Court if necessary and the sooner they were dealt with there, the better.
The proposals are part of An Post's recovery plan to address its deteriorating financial position. It lost €43 million in 2003. This year it is set to break even, but only because it saved more than €20 million by withholding pay increases due to staff under Sustaining Progress.
