Consignia staff wait and watch

Thousands of postal workers in the North will watch anxiously today to see if emergency talks between Consignia, the UK state-owned post office, and trade union chiefs can help avert 30,000 proposed redundancies.

Forty-eight hours ago Consignia wanted to axe the positions over the next 18 months, or 15 per cent of its staff, as part of a restructuring programme. The group, which became a state-owned limited company in May, has a monopoly on postage services valued at up to £1 sterling.

Trade union representatives said the scale of Consignia's proposed cuts had devastated staff in Northern Ireland. Last night it appeared the threat of strike action by key trade unions including the Communication Workers Union, the MSF and the Communications Managers Association, may have forced Consignia to rethink its initial strategy. Trade union chiefs had warned they would consider a strike ballot of members if Consignia did not immediately reconsider the redundancy figure.

A CWU spokesman confirmed last night that talks were scheduled for today between both parties to discuss the proposed restructuring programme. Consignia, which employs 5,000 people in the North, had previously outlined plans to shed 10,000 workers earlier this year. It said it would review its facilities and services in Northern Ireland as part of its group-wide goal to "eliminate inefficiencies". A spokeswoman for Consignia in the North said it was too early to comment on how and when its 5,000 Northern workers might be affected by the plan.