High Court backs Royal Mail’s case for dispute resolution

The High Court has ruled in favour of Royal Mail’s contention that contractual dispute resolution procedures must be followed before the Communication Workers Union (CWU) members can take industrial action. Today’s ruling means that any strike action taken before the dispute resolution procedures have been followed would be unlawful.

In a statement sent to Post&Parcel today, Royal Mail said: “We will now make contact with the CWU as a matter of urgency to begin the process of external mediation. The mediation process will take close to Christmas to be completed, and may be longer. The first step is selecting a mediator acceptable to Royal Mail and the CWU from a panel that was agreed by both parties under the Agenda for Growth.”

Royal Mail added: “We are very committed to working closely with the CWU in order to reach agreement as a matter of priority.”