Postal workers in a Somerset town have voted for strike action and more ballots look set to be held in other parts of the county in a dispute which some believe has future privatisation of Royal Mail at its heart.
Members of the Communication Workers' Union based at Royal Mail's Bridgwater depot say they are each owed £800 for changes in the workplace that have already been implemented. They say the ballot was conducted against a backdrop of alleged bullying and harassment by managers, breaking of local work agreements and unagreed staffing levels.
Some full-time staff who have left have been replaced by part-timers who are not expected to undertake all the same tasks, putting full-timers under more pressure sorting mail for delivery.
Workers fear the moves are part of a plan to save money to make Royal Mail more attractive to private investors.
Union representative Dave Chapple said yesterday: "As far as Bridgwater is concerned we all feel that this is linked to the big government decision about whether to privatise Royal Mail."
Last month Royal Mail unveiled a big jump in profits to £440 million, more than double the £152 million in 2012, and Business Secretary Vince Cable said there is "no alternative" to privatising the service which he said faces a "fundamental threat" from email and must be reformed.
About 10 per cent of shares would go to the workforce.
The union will decide at national level on Monday whether strike action should take place, and if it gives the go-ahead it must give seven days' notice to Royal Mail. It is understood that a series of strikes of varying lengths could be called.
CWU area official David Wilshire said: "This vote for strike action shows that feelings are running high in the depot." The union has 115 members at the depot. Sixty-five voted in favour of a strike with 17 against, a 79.3 per cent Yes vote.
Rhys Jones, a spokesman for Royal Mail, said: "It is disappointing that our colleagues have voted in favour of industrial action, however we remain hopeful that the issues can be resolved locally."
Mail from the depot is delivered to the TA5, TA6 and TA7 postcode areas in Bridgwater.
Meanwhile, new protections against the removal of post boxes in rural areas like the West Country have been introduced by the industry regulator.
Ofcom already requires Royal Mail to provide a sufficient number of post boxes in appropriate locations to meet the needs of UK postal users.
Before yesterday's announcement, the previous criteria applied in only 61 of the 121 postcode areas in the UK.
Following consultation, Ofcom has now increased regulatory protection for post boxes by introducing new criteria that will apply nationwide for the first time.
The new rules now specify that there must be a post box within half-a-mile of at least 98 per cent of homes. For the remaining 2 per cent, Royal Mail must provide sufficient post boxes or other means of access to the universal service such as collection on delivery.
