Royal Mail staff vote to strike in pay dispute

theguardian.com:

Thousands of Royal Mail workers have voted to strike in a dispute over pay.

About 115,000 members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) were balloted on whether to stage a campaign of industrial action and voted 96.7% in favour of strikes, on a turnout of 77%. The result of the ballot was announced by the union’s general secretary, Dave Ward, and its deputy general secretary, Terry Pullinger, at the York Barbican.

It is poised to be the biggest strike in what is shaping up to be a summer of discontent, as thousands of workers from different industries take action to demand pay awards that keep up with the soaring cost of living.

Rail workers have staged strikes, as have barristers in England and Wales. Heathrow airport is facing a three-day strike by refuellers this week, the Unite union said.

The CWU has said management intended to impose a 2% pay rise that would be a “dramatic real-terms wage cut” because of soaring inflation.

More details soon …