Your Jobs Will Go, My Bonus Will Grow!

As Royal Mail boss Moya Greene looks at axing another 40,000 jobs (on top of the 65,000 that have already gone since 2002), she will be very happy with her £777,611 pay and bonus package while Royal Mail workers will be told to be even more flexible and accept wages that are declining as inflation rises.

According to the Royal Mail results released this week, the public service is 'insolvent' and would be unable to pay workers wages if it were not for the £1.7bn lifeline from the public purse, reports This Is Money. Yet Moya has no problem accepting her massive wage during her 9 months at Royal Mail, while at the same time telling employees that they will NOT be getting the bonus they were expecting.

Some might be tempted to believe that Moya Greene has cooked the books, especially since modernisation costs have been added to the figures for the first time - resulting in the letters and parcels loss. While others might think privatisation would lead to a better service, but the truth remains that competition in the postal market did NOT lead to lower stamp prices for customers. Instead first class stamps have risen 40% since competition was introduced  and selling off Royal Mail will eventually see the end the universal daily delivery.

Royal Mail employees have spent the last ten years being told that modernisation will lead to job security, but for the many thousands who lost their jobs, this promise proved false. Now one in four posties will lose their job and the other 75% of workers will have their wages driven downwards - while sitting at the top of Royal Mail, Moya Greene will be enjoying her bumper wage packet!

Are Royal Mail Cooking The Books?

Royal Mail not only have a reputation for losing letters, they have now mysteriously turned a £121m profit (see chart on left) into a £100m+ LOSS for 2010-11, if Sky News has it's figures right. That means around £220m has vanished from Royal Mail letters in one year, a figure quite unbelievable yet some how convenient for those who wanted to privatise this national service.

While mail volumes are expected to show a 5% decline for 2010-11, the head count reduction more than offsets that decline - meaning the £100m 'loss' has appeared, in yet another accountancy trick of massaging the figures in order for Royal Mail to paint a grim picture ahead of industrial action and privatisation.

Is Royal Mail really in need of a private cash injection as ConDem MP's claim or are we being hood winked into allowing our national daily postal service to be handed over to private hands in order to eventually end the daily delivery (as has now happened in Holland following privatisation of it's postal service)?

The truth is - Royal Mail letters are NOT losing money, it is the cost of modernisation that has cost the service over £220m during the past year. As Sky reports, "The costs of the company's modernisation programme, led by Moya Greene, the new chief executive, have been taken into account as part of the reported numbers for the first time." For those not familiar with what modernisation at Royal Mail entails - it means the purchase of thousands of new vans and equipment for Royal Mail's new delivery methods. The cost will be offset by the reduction of staff involved with delivering the mail (according to the same report, up to 40,000 jobs could be at risk). New sorting machines are being deployed around the country and it seems that these costs are now being added to the balance sheets, even though the previous government loaned Royal Mail £1b for it's modernisation programme.

Royal Mail will now try and present a bleak picture with the aim of trying to scare employees and give the government the free hand as it tries to sell off the nations silverware on the cheap. Royal Mail workers have bent over backwards since the liberalisation of the postal market by New Labour at the start of this millennium. They have accepted below inflation pay rise while at the same time seen thousands of jobs disappear, all in the name of 'moderisation'. London workers are facing the prospect of compulsory redundancies if Royal Mail closes the three mail centres in the capital.

The CWU have tried to work with Royal Mail, putting forward alternatives that would help build the business but Royal Mail have consistently ignored such proposals as they remain hell bent on selling off assets ahead of privatisation. Postal workers know the stakes are high, and they are often the last line of defence in protecting this valued public service. The Royal Mail financial figures may not match up, but the need for co-ordinated industrial action matches. It is time workers stood up to the ConDem government and opposed the sell off of Royal Mail. Posties need to see through the Royal Mail propaganda that will be coming their way over the coming months and stand united in defending jobs and conditions.

The Great Royal Mail Swindle

Just ten months ago, Royal Mail reported a massive 26% jump in profits (even though mail volumes had fallen and another 8,000 jobs disappeared from the service) - yet today Royal Mail claims it is virtually bankrupt. According to management talk, Royal Mail came 'dangerously close to not being able to pay wages' as staff learned they will no longer be in line for a payout.

Astonishingly Royal Mail have managed to turn millions of assets and a £404m profit (May 2010) into a business it describes as 'worthless'. Workers were told in 2007 they could 'earn' up to £5,300 each in controversial company shares. Now the same workers have been told those shares are now worth nothing. Royal Mail told workers, "The whole idea of Colleague Shares is to ensure that you are rewarded for your help in making improvements to the business." Workers went that extra mile, did all the company asked and now will be rewarded with job cuts and bigger post rounds. No wonder the CWU rightly dismissed the phantom share scheme back in 2007, workers should have been rewarded via the pay packet not in pretend shares.

Have people stopped posting letters?  -of course not! Have workers been awarded massive pay rises  - not a chance! The great Royal Mail swindle could be traced back to the £3.5m pay off awarded to Adam  Crozier for leaving, but that is only one part of the story. Since the coalition government came into power in May, they have been hell bent on dumping this much loved public service into the waste bin of the business world. What better way than offering Royal Mail for 'free' to a competitor by rendering the service 'worthless'. It came as no surprise to hear management echo the government call for privatisation of Royal Mail, especially now there is apparently no more money in the bank to even pay wages!

The real swindle can be seen when we examine the true facts about Royal Mail - workers are being conned into believing privatisation is the only way they will be able to keep jobs. Management were keen to back that up with the announcement of another 1,700 job losses and the proposed closure of two London mail centres. Hoping to strike fear into the remaining workforce, management are rubbing their hands in glee at the prospect of another company taking over Royal Mail. One worker rightly said, "We have done all you have asked us to do and still it isn't good enough for you!"

Let's not forget that workers at Royal Mail have transformed the way they work, seen over 40,000 fellow members lose their jobs and had their pension robbed from them. Now they are being conned about the state of the business to pave the way for privatisation. Unless the CWU get of it's backside and stops sucking up to Labour, who offer no hope for the union or it's members - then Royal Mail workers are doomed.

Privatisation will not result in a better service or a cheaper offer for the public, what it will lead to is the end of the 'one price goes anywhere' , an end to the 6 day delivery (and that doesn't mean posties will get Saturday off!) and a tearing up of terms and conditions. The best example Royal Mail workers can see, is the TNT postal workers story in Holland - as highlighted on a previous article, 'Royal Mail Workers Beware'. Only a fully nationalised public postal service will protect the public from money grabbing businesses who want to cream off the profit while killing off the service. If Royal Mail is as hard up as they say they are, maybe they should take back some of the millions paid out to former bosses.................

Why We Should Be Angry With The Banks

The governor of the Bank of England has been surprised that the British public have not been as angry with the banks as he thought they would be. Mervyn King told the treasury committee,"The price of this financial crisis is being borne by people who absolutely did not cause it," he said. "Now is the period when the cost is being paid, I'm surprised that the degree of public anger has not been greater than it has." The financial meltdown of 2008 is now being felt, yet widespread anger has yet to erupt. People are beginning to wake up to the reality that the governments £81 billion austerity cuts are linked to the banking crisis - the same crisis that has crippled Ireland.

Banks have continued to reward themselves massive bonuses while thousands of workers have lost their jobs, all of this comes after banks like Lloyds and RBS were bailed out by the government. British taxpayers were forced to handover almost a trillion pounds when the capitalist money markets failed. RBS recently reported an operating profit of £1.913bn (core RBS operating profit was £7.418bn) but told the government it could not afford to start paying back the bailout money. Unsurprisingly the bank somehow managed to find £950m to award themselves bonuses, with over 100 bankers earning more than £1m each. As Len McCluskey, the general secretary of Unite pointed out, "Taxpayers will be baffled as to how it is possible that while we own 84% of this bank it continues to so handsomely reward its investment bankers. This is an institution in which over 21,000 front-line and support staff have been sacked."

Barclays boss was indignant when he faced the Treasury Select Committee earlier this year, Bob Diamond told them, "There was a period of remorse and apology for banks. I think that period needs to be over." Just a few weeks later Barclays announced pre tax profits of £6.07bn and a bonus pool of £2.6bn, with investment banks seeing a salary increase by around 40% over the past year. As a result pay, pensions and bonuses per head at Barclays Capital have risen 20% to £236,000 on average - no wonder Bob Diamond wants to see an end of banker bashing. He must have been annoyed when it became public that Barclays paid just £113m in corporation tax in 2009. The bank was able to use tax avoidance rules in order to protect their bonuses, while at the same time the government began to force the British people to live with £81bn cuts to services.

What will it take for the British people to rise up and say "enough is enough"? Will it be the news that 37% of the FTSE 100 companies did not pay any corporation tax in 2010, while we have been forced to pay an extra 2.5% on VAT this year? Could it be the fact, Lloyds will not pay corporation tax until profits hit £15bn? The bank reported £2.2bn profits, while getting rid of some 26,000 workers since it bought HBOS - many of those former workers have a right to be angry with Lloyds for it's failure.

For the banks it is business as normal, clearly seen when Standard Chartered announced pre-tax profits leaping 19% to a record £3.8bn. The government must be pleased it is being able to rush through it's savage £81bn austerity measures with little or no protest from the vast majority of the British public. Mervyn King hit the right cord, even though his monetary polices and the system of capitalism are a failed system - there is anger at the banks and that anger is not going away. As the cuts begin to hit home and more and more people lose services and jobs, that anger will rise.

Many people are questioning the system and also see the failure of the main parties (Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrats) as they deal with the effects of the financial meltdown. Scores of young people, sold out because of banker greed, are looking for alternatives to capitalism. A future of sky high university fees, youth unemployment nearing 1m and the prospect of being able to afford a mortgage a distant dream - young people are very angry. Anger will not be enough to change our society, we need to change the system.

A socialist society would see the banks and financial power houses taken into public ownership, ending the big bonus culture as surplus monies are channelled back into society. Instead of a small number at the top benefiting, society as a whole would see investment. Education would be a provided for free because a socialist society would be run differently to this greedy capitalist system. The idea of a democratic planned economy has been growing in a new generation of young people who have seen the terrible effects of capitalism - where the rich get richer while the poor get poorer as the ConDem government role back the advances made by the working class during the past 100 years. Labour no longer represent the working class as they mirror the right wing policies of the Tory party, having sacrificed workers to the gods of the financial markets. We need a new mass workers party and the Socialist Party (England & Wales) are building for this future - a future where young people receive an education that is properly funded, housing is created to ensure everyone can obtain a home at an affordable price and a banking system that is properly nationalised for the use in a planned economy that benefits society.

References:

* Guardian - Lloyds bonuses , RBS profits 

* Telegraph - Corporation Tax avoidance , Mervyn King bank anger , Standard Chartered profits , Lloyds avoid corporation tax

* BBC - Barclays bonuses

* Daily Mail - Bob Diamond on banker bashing

* Socialist Party - Socialism

Bahrain crushes protest camp, locks down capital

MANAMA, Bahrain – Troops and tanks locked down the capital of this tiny Gulf kingdom after riot police swinging clubs and firing tear gas smashed into demonstrators, many of them sleeping, in a pre-dawn assault Thursday that uprooted their protest camp demanding political change. Medical officials said four people were killed.Hours after the attack on Manama's main Pearl Square, the military

Royal Mail Sold Out

The Tory and Liberal Democrates have voted to sell off Royal Mail, with only the House of Lords being able to stop the destruction of this much loved public service. Although Labour were against privatisation this time, we need to remember that Labour sought to part-privatise this 350 year old service.

In private hands Royal Mail will transform from a daily universal UK delivery into a post code lottery, where those in cities will be cherry picked and those in rural areas will eventually see the daily delivery of post eroded and eventually wiped out.

A privately owned Royal Mail will no longer be willing to offer a 'one price goes anywhere'. The logic of cost will compel any capitalist company to exert the maximum profit and posting a letter from Lands End to John O'Groats does not fit into this business model.

Separating Post Office Counters from Royal Mail will signal the end of the Post Office, as the two companies will quickly go their separate ways and the interwoven link will fray. As Royal Mail loses a third of it's income from the Post Office both will become more fragile.

Not only have Royal Mail been sold out by the coalition, the British public will be worse off as this public service will be lost forever. Margaret Thatcher sold off our gas, electricity, water and railways, Labour opened the door for privatisation of Royal Mail, education and our health service. It is of no surprise then that Cameron and Clegg want to get their greedy hands on our remaining public services and sell them to their business friends.

We need to continue to oppose the sale of Royal Mail and call for the investment into the Post Office, as communities and businesses rely on this publicly run service. What next - will we see the BBC sold to the likes of Rupert Murdoch? Privatisation of Royal Mail was defeated before (on it's final reading) as Michael Heseltine was forced into retreat because of the public outcry. A Socialist government would make sure the postal service remained 100% in public hands and used for the benefit of all, not for the greed of the few.

Burning Quangos Becomes A Puff Of Smoke!

Just a few days into 2011 we have been inundated with news stories about the effects of the coalition's savage attacks on ordinary people. While George Osborne has praised his £81b cuts, leading organisations have repeatedly condemned the short-sightedness of the government.

Much fanfare proceeded the burning of the quangos, but now it looks like the £1b of so-called 'savings' have gone up in a puff of smoke. Conservative MP Bernard Jenkin, chair of the cross-party committee, said: "The whole process was rushed and poorly handled and should have been thought through a lot more." The effects of axing education quangos, such as almost 1,000 jobs lost in Coventry from Becta and QCDA are being felt by those who lost their jobs and schools will not save money. This coalition government has repeatedly failed to listen or take heed of warnings.

The police have issued warnings about the dangers of cutting their budgets, not because they want to keep their jobs but because they know the effects of the Comprehensive Spending Review will lead to an increase in crime. As poverty increases, more people will resort to a life of crime and reduced police numbers will only exasperate the situation. The last time the Tories were in power, Thatcher cut public services and police numbers fell - while crime increased under her leadership. The ConDem coalition will end up with the same result if the people of Britain don't fight back.

We all hate waste and quangos that flutter away our money, should indeed be exposed and call to account. Yet the bonfire of quangos has become nothing more than a puff of smoke - the promised £1b 'savings' will not take place and unsurprisingly, more quangos will be created to replace those burned out quangos.

Meanwhile, for the banks it is business as usual with big bonuses continuing to be paid out in 2010/11. Even though Liberal Democrate Vince Cable indicated he would take action against the banks that continued to award big bonuses for failure. Once again the opposite has been true and the coalition have taken no action, instead banks have seen many salaries rise significantly, by up to 40% in some cases. The highlights above are just a few examples of the failure that this capitalist government seeks to pursue it's ideological goals at the expense of the working class.

We need a workers party that will defend the working class in word and in deed, may 2011 be the year that workers unite and fight to gain control of our lives and society!

If Labour Were In Power Today

Just suppose we had a general election now and Labour regained power, would Ed Milliband's all new Labour Party be any different from 'New Labour'? The latest YouGov opinion poll put Labour on 42%, Tories on 39% and LibDem's slumped down to 9% as the ConDem cuts became reality for more and more people.

Labour have been able to gain support at the LibDem's expense, enjoying a free ride on the back of Nick Clegg's dwindling popularity over tuition fees. Could Ed Milliband's new New Labour be a winning formula? Have Labour suddenly become the worker's party once again? Not on your nelly!

On numerous occasions Ed Milliband has distanced himself from workers and student struggles, failing to turn up for protests against cuts and condemning union leader's for daring to suggest coordinated strike action against the £81b coalition cuts. Milliband and Labour are no more friends of the working class now than Brown and Blair were. Labour would sooner suck up to the markets and fat cat business leaders than stand up for the workers who vote for them election after election.

If Labour were in power today, they would still be slashing public services and would still leave anti-union laws untouched, ensuring the UK continued to have the worst anti-union laws in Europe. Secretly Labour are hoping the public will turn on the LibDems and Tories, resulting in a Labour government. But the Tories will be able to remind voters that Labour, instead of resisting cuts, actually encouraged cuts on a local level as Labour councils up and down the country wielded the axe on much needed public services.

Ed Milliband is neither red nor representative of real workers, sadly the Labour Party sold workers out back in the early 80's and eventually became more blue than Margaret Thatcher as it encouraged back-door privatisation of our health and education service. Most Labour voters will be hoping Ed Milliband can usher the party back into power, but don't be surprised if the Tories win the next election as Labour fail to offer a real socialist manifesto defending services and workers from the greed of business.

The three major parties are failing the working class with their general centre-right policies, yet more and more people are discovering there is a better way to run society. Socialist principles are beginning to become a viable alternative to the failed capitalist market economy, as highlighted by the Socialist Party. A planned economy based on workers democratic control, producing goods and services for the nation rather than for the fat cat bosses is possible.

Visit: www.socialistparty.org.uk

Workers Lose Out Yet Again

UK workers have either had a pay freeze, pay cut or a very small rise in recent years, as the official chart shows above. As employers complained of hard times, workers had to be grateful for a job - for many that meant taking a pay cut or freeze back in 2009. By August 2010 the average pay increase was just 2%, still over 50% down on August 2008. Notice how the big bank bonuses made a return earlier this year, a further insult to UK workers who are being told they have to pay for the bankers crisis of 2008.




Now look at the UK inflation figures (pictured above) from the same period, you would expect that if workers pay increases slower, then prices for goods would rise slower. Instead we see prices rising at a faster pace, resulting in those workers who were lucky enough to even get a 2% wage increase in 2010 actually losing out. The millions of public sector workers are even worse off, as rising consumer goods would mean they were about 3% poorer. Women fare even worse as the Office of National Statistics show that clothing and footwear has increased 6.4%, a record rise in August and September 2010. The UK rate was 3.1 per cent whereas the EU’s as a whole was 2.0 per cent, meaning that UK shoppers were paying even  more overall than our European neighbours.

The markets and business leaders will be happy with these figures because it keeps workers pay down, resulting in higher profits for the company. This has not been fed back into the labour market - unemployment figures for 2010 prove this. Instead business leaders are paying off any debt while rates are so low, buying back shares and reducing total dividend payouts and many companies now have a cash surplus thanks in part to rising inflation and lower wages.

The UK government announced that Capital Gains Tax would be reduced to 28%, the lowest in Western Europe and the lowest rates ever for UK business. Yet it is ordinary workers who lose out as the markets just look after their own and seek to keep the working class down. Wealth will continue to remain in the hands of the few, instead of being distributed for the needs of society. Only an alternative to this capitalist culture can really make it a fairer world. A Socialist alternative would result in fair wages and a re-distribution of wealth as a planned economy takes shape. For more reading, visit:  http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/

*Both charts are from the UK Office of National Statistics