Postal workers call off strikes

Strikes planned by postal workers across Staffordshire today and tomorrow have been called off.

The Royal Mail today said the actions planned across the ST postcode area had been stopped following productive talks with the Communication Workers' Union.

"A resolution was reached yesterday morning after talks, which began on a national level on Wednesday, concluded. We have reached agreement with the CWU on a way forward on resourcing issues central to the dispute. Action was due to take place at 11 delivery offices across the region."We are now waiting for confirmation from the union on whether two further days of action planned on Wednesday, January 24 and Thursday, January 25 will go ahead," said Royal Mail spokeswoman Jane Thomas.

The strikes had been called following three one-day walkouts last month by CWU members in a dispute over full-time delivery vacancies being filled by part-time workers.

The latest round of action would have affected delivery offices in Stafford, Uttoxeter and Stoke-on-Trent.

The union says that plans for the further 48-hour strike, on January 25 and 26 remain in place for the time being.

The union's postal executive is to make a decision on the strikes next week, but it is expected those will probably be withdrawn.