Royal Mail has agreed to a three-year settlement on pay and improvements to employees’ terms and conditions.
This builds on the original December 2024 agreement between EP Group, which acquired Royal Mail’s parent firm, and the Communication Workers Union (CWU). The terms cover all CWU employees at Royal Mail.
The three-year pay deal will ensure workers at the organisation see their pay match or rise above inflation for the next three years. In the first year, they will receive a 4.2% pay rise backdated to 1 April and improvements to overtime and scheduled attendance.
In the second and third years, employees will receive pay rises that match inflation rates. However, if it is less than 2% in either year, they will receive a minimum of 2%, and if it is above 3% in either year, they can trigger a reopener clause.
The union has also agreed with EP Group to trial and implement a new incentive scheme to give all employees a realistic chance of additional earnings, as well as an improved voluntary redundancy settlement and an increased maximum entitlement of 52 weeks.
Furthermore, the union is finalising the terms of the employee collective benefit trust, with 10% of any dividend due to members once the organisation returns to profit, and will conclude sick pay arrangement negotiations and introduce an improved agreement by September.
A Royal Main spokesperson said: “This is a pivotal moment in the history of Royal Mail. It builds upon the groundbreaking agreement reached between EP Group, the government and the CWU last December and it is crucial that all members, reps and branches understand the link between the two agreements.
“These agreements offer everyone the chance to move on from the most bitter dispute in the history of the organisation and the damaging managerial actions that have continued since. Ultimately, the change of approach we have seen nationally will filter to where it matters: in the workplace.”