Quadrant poised for strike action
by Christina Golding
CATERING staff working for Quadrant, the Post Office's catering division, are on the brink of striking as unions attempt negotiations over terms and conditions in advance of a proposed sell-off.
The Communications Workers Union (CWU) wants a guarantee that there will be no compulsory redundancies.
The Post Office is about to sell 49% of the £70m catering operation to a private company and an announcement is due at the end of March.
The CWU has been largely successful over requests to maintain employees' terms and conditions, such as keeping the Post Office pension schemes, but a strike looks likely if this week's talks fail to provide redundancy protection.
Last month many Post Office canteens were left empty and takings plummeted after a week-long boycott over the privatisation plans (Caterer, 12 February, page 10).
Quadrant sees the partnership agreement as a route to putting the business in a stronger position to bid for new contracts, with employees remaining part of "the Post Office family". Gerry Smith, general manager of Quadrant, said that no conclusion had yet been reached. "Everybody wants to see this resolved. We recognise the concerns and are still in discussions," he said.
It is understood that a CWU ballot resulted in a 2:1 vote in favour of striking.
