ColleagueShare
Latest update
The CWU has not accepted Royal Mail's position on ColleagueShare. The matter is subject to ongoing discussions. It will be a key feature of the structured national talks that we are now engaged in with the company and we will continue to keep you updated regularly.
July 2011: Postal newsletter: general update on issues including ColleagueShare, World Class Mail, pensions, the London mail centre dispute and key policies agreed at this year's annual conference.
1st April 2011: Letter to Branches: CWU Response to Royal Mail Group New Business
Plan/ColleagueShare Announcement (322/11)
March 2011: Letter to Members: CWU response to Royal Mail Group annuoncement on
ColleagueShare
Background
- The ColleagueShare scheme and how it operates was agreed
between Royal Mail Group and the Government back in 2007. The CWU
was excluded from those discussions at that time.
- At the time we argued that any available money should be used
to guarantee your pensions and increase basic pay rather than
allocated to a phantom "share" scheme.
- Despite these concerns, the union has always striven to ensure
that agreed payments are made and that monies due to you for your
hard work and efforts are properly rewarded.
- So far, "dividend" payments totalling £1,600
have been paid out to you and, as late as last September, there was
a remaining "dividend value" of some £1,400, half of
which was scheduled to be paid out in April this year and the other
half in April next year, 2012.
- Shortly ahead of this year's expected payment, Royal Mail
told us that this "value" had dwindled to nothing citing
a worse than expected fall in revenue, volumes and profit, a new
business plan assuming cash negativity until 2015 and lower than
expected savings from transformation.
- Unsatisfied with their explanations, the union set out our
policy on the issue seeking Royal Mail to either maintain the value
of payments due, or renegotiate alternative benefits for you.
- According to Royal Mail new adjustments linked to the pensions
provisions within the new Postal Services Act may yet improve the
final valuation of ColleagueShare although it is unlikely that the
"shares" will return to anywhere near their previous
"value." These adjustments will now take place around May
2012.
- In response, the union reminded the company of our policy that had been strengthened by the emergency motion unanimously agreed at this year's annual conference, endorsing this policy.
For more information please feel free to contact us.
