UK Royal Mail workers set to call second strike

Union leaders are expected to call a second pay strike by postal workers in London, threatening further disruption to mail deliveries.

The executive of the Communication Workers Union is set to announce that thousands of postmen and women in the capital will walkout on October 16 to coincide with a stoppage by council workers involved in a separate row over pay.

Meanwhile postal workers across the country will receive a pay rise over the next few days even though a national dispute remained unresolved.

The Royal Mail said a 3% increase will be paid into salaries, with a further 10% available once productivity targets were met.

Postmen and women in London will receive a £300 a year rise in the London Weighting allowance as they prepare to take further industrial action.

A 24-hour stoppage last week caused huge disruption to collections and deliveries and cost the Royal Mail up to £10 million.

A Royal Mail spokesman said further strikes would not improve the offer, which the company believed was fair.

The union is seeking a London Weighting allowance of £4,000 a year. The £300 will increase Outer London Weighting to £2,667 and Inner London Weighting to £3,784.

CWU members narrowly-voted against a national strike over pay last month but workers in London backed industrial action over allowances.

No talks are planned between the two sides.