4:05pm Thursday 18th April 2013
By Ruth Halkon
Staff at a Potters Bar post office will go on strike tomorrow in a dispute over closures, job security and pay.
Ten members of staff at the Darkes Lane branch will walk out tomorrow afternoon at 2.30pm, along with employees at 373 other crown post office branches across the country.
Crown post offices are directly run by the Post Office, but the company wishes to franchise out 76 branches with other retail companies, or sell them to save money.
Communication Workers Union area representative David Smith said: “Franchising will affect the level of service, it is dumbing down.
"Staff at crown post offices are highly trained and work at a higher level, whereas the franchise branches are more reliant on the retail side. If the retail side suffers, Potters Bar could lose its post office.”
He added: “Confidence in Post Office management is at an all-time low.
“I hope strike action will prevent franchising from happening. Doing nothing is not an option.”
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