Royal Mail workers vote for deal with union

Royal Mail workers have voted overwhelmingly for an agreement covering strategy, pay and jobs with the support of their union.

The company said 91.5% of eligible Communication Workers Union members voted for the agreement, allowing it to make more frequent changes to its network and introduce technology to improve service and efficiency.

Workers will get a 2.7% pay rise starting in April 2020 and a further 1% increase a year later. Some handwritten procedures will be phased out, giving Royal Mail better data, and the company will have a quicker dispute resolution process for workers.

Royal Mail said it would finish a review of its network by April that could lead to more frequent deliveries throughout the week. The company said it planned dedicated van deliveries for parcels while keeping an efficient letters business.

The FTSE 250 company delivered more parcels than letters for the first time in the six months to the end of September as parcel business boomed with the increase in online shopping during the pandemic.

"We are committed to remaining the best employer in our industry," Royal Mail said. "We are now working with CWU to implement the changes we need, in order to capitalise on the significant growth we have seen in parcels so far this year."

Royal Mail shares were little changed at 410.9p at 16:02 GMT.