Postal dispute still deadlocked

Further disruption is feared if talks fail this weekend

The dispute between the postal workers' union and Royal Mail remains deadlocked as the first of two walkouts over pay and job cuts comes to an end.

Communication Workers Union (CWU) members had been on strike since Thursday.

Another two-day walkout is planned for Monday, adding to the disruption, if negotiations this weekend fail.

CWU spokesman Kevin Slocombe said: "We need to continue to work hard for an agreement."

A spokesman for the Royal Mail said: "The discussions are continuing and we are prepared to talk for as long as is necessary."

He added: "In the last 24 hours we have handled 45% of the mail in our system."

The company says about 35,000 of its employees continued to work on Thursday and Friday despite the action.

Meanwhile, Unite, which represents 12,000 managers, has struck a deal with Royal Mail on pay and pensions.

It agreed a pay rise of 7.3% over two years, but accepted the replacement of the current final salary pension scheme with a "career-average" scheme instead.

Further walkouts

CWU members returned to picket lines on Friday and said support for the strike had been "overwhelming".

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But Royal Mail rejected such claims, arguing that in some places up to 90% of workers were working "as normal" and that 35,000 had come to work in the strike's first day.

The union plans to stage rolling strikes each Monday - starting this Monday at 0300 BST - until the dispute is resolved.

It centres on the union's refusal to accept a pay offer of 2.5% as well as modernisation plans, which it believes will threaten about 40,000 jobs.

Royal Mail fears loss of business because of strikes.

The government says it is up to the union and management to resolve the matter.