A somewhat bizarre threat by the Communication Workers Union (CWU) to get postal workers to boycott downstream access (DSA) mail, in effect going on a targeted strike against third-party private sector mail firms, has caused consternation in the direct mail sector.

Aside from the fact that many are questioning whether such action is legal, the mere suggestion has riled DSA providers and raised concerns from DM printers that the negative publicity will only add to customers’ reasons to switch from print to electronic formats.

Nevertheless, the CWU has insisted it plans to go ahead with a ballot in the coming months unless Ofcom does something "to address the unfair competition [that] is threatening the universal service".

If no action is taken, the union has said it will hold a "consultative ballot" of its members in Royal Mail before the spring, "with the intention of boycotting competitors’ mail" – meaning that any mail sent via a company other than Royal Mail "would not be delivered".

Members of the DSA mail sector have, unsurprisingly, reacted angrily to this threat, with most of the concern centred around the fact that such action could deter people from using an already struggling form of communication.

"It will put a nail in the coffin of a market that is currently trying its very best to innovate and grow," says Secured Mail managing director Mark Bigley.

He dismisses the idea that competition is a threat to the universal service: "At Secured Mail, we have always and will always maintain that a strong, sustainable Royal Mail remains in the interests of all postal users.

"And there is evidence that, had competition not been around, post would have declined even more quickly as prices would have gone up more quickly."

CFH managing director Dave Broadway says that the boycott threat is more about the Royal Mail wanting to remain a monopoly, and that if it is concerned about competition it can change the prices it charges DSA providers, if it wishes to do so.

"This is in their power," he adds. "The only limitation they have is on stamp prices."

And Broadway says that if the boycott were to go ahead, it would "almost certainly" be illegal, as it would be interfering with the delivery of post outside of a proper industrial dispute with an employer.

He adds that a boycott could potentially even put lives at risk, if it prevented someone suffering with a serious illness from receiving an urgent letter from their doctor.

He says: "This could open a can of worms. It should be stamped on by the authorities before it happens."

"If they do decide to take this action, the union will find itself sued from a number of directions; we would be one of them. And Ofcom would take some action against the Royal Mail."

Commercial freedom

Asked whether it would indeed take such action in the case of a boycott, an Ofcom spokeswoman said that in March 2012, Ofcom gave Royal Mail commercial freedom to respond to a "rapidly changing market to secure the universal postal service".

"At that time, Ofcom imposed a condition on Royal Mail to continue to supply access services," she says. "We closely monitor Royal Mail’s performance to safeguard the universal service for consumers and its compliance with its other regulatory conditions, while Royal Mail is responsible for handling relationships with staff."

The CWU threat applies to all DSA mail, but it also singled out TNT in its initial statement, claiming that the company "competes by paying poverty wages".

A TNT spokesman says it "will not get drawn into pay", but adds that TNT plans to create 20,000 jobs in the postal sector over the next five years, "which is good news for the British economy and good news for the UK postal sector".

"I think it is in everyone’s interest that we work to promote the benefits of using the postal sector and help to make the UK postal sector even stronger than it is today," he says.

Broadway also defends the DSA mail sector on the pay its workforce receives, saying that CFH pays a lot more than minimum or living wage – as does TNT.

"We run our own delivery service in Bristol and Bath and we are able to fill our positions at similar rates to TNT," he says. "If people didn’t like the salaries, they wouldn’t do it."

For now Royal Mail isn’t commenting on the threat, although with an inevitable union showdown on privatisation looming that may well be because it is happy to see someone else take the flak.

• Last month, the CWU said that a boycott of DSA mail could be on the cards after the union threatened to ballot postal workers on the issue before this spring
• If it went ahead, this would mean that any mail sent via a company other than Royal Mail "would not be delivered"
• It said unfair competition was threatening the universal service and also complained that competitors did not pay staff enough
• Members of the DSA mail sector have said that such action could deter people from using the postal service, and that competition has in fact helped the postal sector
• At least one provider has said it would sue if the boycott went ahead. He said that such a boycott would almost certainly be illegal
• DSA mail providers have defended the salaries they pay their employees, saying they mostly pay at least living wage, and are providing thousands of jobs
• Ofcom said it will "closely monitor Royal Mail’s performance to safeguard the universal service"

How do you think a boycott would impact the print sector?

Danny Narey
Operations director, Adare
"This is just another barrier  to using post as the communication medium of choice for our clients. It’s a barrier the industry really doesn’t need right now. Post faces enough challenges and we just don’t need another challenge like this. They should be following due process. I’m not sure that what they are threatening is legal and even if it were I don’t think that is the way to approach it. If they feel there is a generally unfair competitive advantage on the side of DSA providers, then they need to take that up with Ofcom."

Graeme Parry
Production manager, ProCo
"It’s just more negativity. I guess Royal Mail’s end-game is to try to claw back the some of the clients and the bulk of mail that DSA has taken a slice of. I’m unsure of their ideology of enforcing a boycott because it clearly breaches terms and conditions they have with DSA providers. It has certainly raised eyebrows in the sector, particularly regarding pay structure, which has nothing to do with them. This is already a delicate medium and all it will do is increase the lack of confidence in the mailing industry as a whole."

Martin Lander
Managing director, Enmail
"The impact would depend on how prolonged the boycott is. But a lot of people are using downstream access to get their post out now as it is generally a better price. So if they cannot do that because of a boycott, these people will just find an alternative. That will probably mean using digital methods. On so many transactional items people are already opting for digital instead, and this could mean that even more people are will do that. The CWU has to wake up to the fact that competition exists in every sector in this country."