THIS WEEK IN 1971: '˜Meeting in Southsea backs postak strike'

Fred Moss, the general treasurer of the Post Office Workers' Union, told a mass meeting of postal workers at Southsea he would be prepared to '˜give in' for a pay award of 12 per cent, which would mean a minimum increase of £3 with a reduction in the length of scales.
By The Newsroom
Published 21st Jan 2018, 06:00 GMT
The Kings Theatre where a rally for members from the southern region of the Post Office Workers' Union was heldThe Kings Theatre where a rally for members from the southern region of the Post Office Workers' Union was held
The Kings Theatre where a rally for members from the southern region of the Post Office Workers' Union was held

At a meeting at the Kings Theatre, Southsea, workers from Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Sussex, Kent and Surrey pledged their support to the union which was calling an all-out strike to demand a 15 per cent pay increase.

They also expressed their fears of surviving for up to three weeks without pay and strike money, and about the reaction from the general public.

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Mr Moss said there was a total of £365,000 in the union’s ‘kitty’, but with 220,000 workers it meant only 35-shillings a head.

Therefore, the union felt it had to start using that money towards informing the general public about what the strike was about.

One worker said: ‘There have been claims that a postman takes home £25 a week. This is nonsense.

‘Many of those here can expect a flat wage of £14 to £15 a week. You can take home £25, but for this you have to work a 60-hour week, and the opportunity for this is rare.’

Related topics:SouthseaSurreyKentSussexIsle of WightKings TheatreHampshire