LONDON (AFP) — Thousands of postal workers are to stage a 24-hour walkout on Friday amid a spiralling dispute over job cuts and working practices, the Communication Workers Union said on Tuesday.
Union officials said more than 12,000 workers will observe the strike in a move which will affect deliveries in London, Edinburgh, Bristol, Darlington, Stoke-on-Trent, Plymouth, Norfolk and Essex.
Dave Ward, deputy general secretary of the CWU said the union had received a growing number of requests for industrial action from postal workers across the country.
"There are serious and growing problems in the postal sector which urgently need resolving," he said.
Union officials say Royal Mail has cut back on pay and jobs without any agreement, and has also cut back on services.
"The current cuts, bullying managers and ever-increasing workloads on a shrinking workforce cannot continue," Ward said.
"Pressure and stress is at breaking point for postal workers."
Disgruntled workers will release thousands of balloons into the air over Royal Mail depots around the country, and will deliver letters of protest to Business Secretary Peter Mandelson and Royal Mail chief executive Adam Crosier.
Plans to semi-privatise the state-owned postal operator, which has debts of some eight billion pounds, were abandoned earlier this month.
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