Royal Mail/CWU Joint Communication Covering Seasonal Variation (RMG/CWU Business Recovery, Transformation and Growth Agreement – Appendix 1)
This Joint Communication has been agreed to confirm ongoing arrangements on Seasonal Variation as set out in the RMG/CWU Business Recovery, Transformation and Growth Agreement, Appendix 1, this joint communication sits alongside the relaunch of section 2.5 Joint Statement Working together to Improve Quality of Service (Annex B).
Following the initial introduction of Seasonal Variation, Royal Mail and the CWU identified an opportunity to adjust the agreed design to meet an evolving set of business and employee objectives. After commencing the scheme in the High Season 2023 (from 4th September to 17th December 2023) Royal Mail and CWU agreed to implement an additional 5-week Low Season in January and February 2024. The decision to introduce this reduction was an attempt to better align work hours to traffic during the period, and to give some hours back to employees prior to the end of the financial year. Key features of the agreement: –
- Between weeks 44 – 48 (22nd January 2024 until 25th February 2024 – 5 weeks) full time employees would typically reduce their attendance to 35 hours per week
- Full Time Delivery employees would start 14 minutes later and finish 10 minutes earlier during this period
- For part time employees their attendances would reduce by 10 minutes
After examining the latest workload forecasts, Royal Mail and the CWU have agreed to extend this Low season by four weeks, supporting better resourcing to workload outcomes and offering further opportunities to give employees back owed time from the High season in 2023. To ensure employees’ seasonal variation hours are balanced out by December 2024, the Summer 2024 Low Season will be reduced by 4 weeks. In summary: –
Winter Low Season 2024
- Between weeks 49 – 52 (26th February 2024 until 24th March 2024 – 4 weeks) full time employees will continue with reduced 35 hours per week attendance
- Full Time Delivery employees will start 14 minutes later and finish 10 minutes earlier during this period
- For part time employees their attendances will reduce by 10 minutes
Summer Low Season 2024
- During the Summer 2024 period, during weeks 13 – 23 (24th June 2024 until 8th September 2024), full time employees will typically work at 35 hours, in line with the agreement, for 11 weeks
- This will mean that full time employees will start 14 minutes later and finish 10 minutes earlier, and part time employees will work 10 minutes less per day
- The peak period for 2024, where full time employees will typically increase their hours to 39 hours, will remain 5 weeks (18th November 2024 – 22nd December 2024)
As per the recent Joint Communication on the initial Low Season introduction, the following key points remain valid: –
- The signatories to this joint communication recognise the initial 15 week period for high and low season can be reduced to a lower number of weeks and will finalise this reduction for seasonal variation to be applied in 2025/2026 by no later than 31st March 2024, considering lessons learnt from the initial stages of Seasonal Variation implementation.
- In line with Appendix 1, Seasonal Variation, Section 1.2.4 of the National Agreement, the impact of the flex time being applied to the start of the duty in the 2024 High Season will be assessed. Specifically, it will be reviewed to assess if it creates issues such as instances of running out of work between wave 1 and wave 2 arrivals, impacting indoor productivity. This review will also take into account that the Network Window impact would have been deployed and associated changes to move start times.
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This adjustment to the Seasonal Variation design means that by the end of the 2024/25 Annual leave year, employee’s planned working hours after the effect of Seasonal Variation will have been balanced up.
Both parties have agreed to jointly launch the contents of the above Joint Communication with the RM Regional Operations Directors and CWU Divisional Reps on Tuesday 13th February 2024.
Where there are local level issues or questions in terms of the application of the above these should be raised as a matter of priority by the relevant COMs and local CWU Reps to OPL/ADR level for resolution.
Any issues or enquiries regarding this Joint Communication should be raised with the appropriate national signatories from both Royal Mail and the CWU.
Martin Walsh
Deputy General Secretary Postal
CWU
Alistair Cochrane
Chief Operations Officer
Royal Mail
Mark Baulch
Assistant Secretary
CWU
Ricky McAulay
UK Operations Director
Royal Mail
19th February 2023