Royal Mail warns UK postal service will be ‘materially lossmaking’ if strikes go ahead

Royal Mail has warned that its UK postal service will be "Materially lossmaking" this year if a series of proposed strikes take place across four days in August and September. The company said on Wednesday that the Communication Workers Union plans to organise strikes on August 26 and 31, as well as on September 8 and 9, the latest in a wave of industrial action sweeping across the UK. The postal service said the CWU had rejected a pay award worth up to 5.5 per cent, which would have added around £230mn to Royal Mail's annual "People costs" at a time when the business is already lossmaking. Royal Mail had previously expected to break even if it was able to push ahead with its cost savings and modernisation plan. In the three months to the end of June, the UK postal service reported an operating loss of £92mn. "The negative commercial impact of any strike action will only make pay rises less affordable and could put jobs at risk," said Royal Mail. Robin Byde, analyst at Zeus Capital said: "These are tough times for Royal Mail and postal workers, the uplift from Covid and the lockdowns is long gone."

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