by Christina Golding
THE run-up to the sale of half of Quadrant, the Post Office's £70m-a-year catering wing, has provoked a fresh outcry from workers, with canteen boycotts and the threat of strike action by caterers.
A week-long boycott earlier this month left some of Quadrant's canteens empty and many only half-full as workers voted with their feet over the Post Office's decision to offload 49% of its in-house catering to a private company.
A spokesman from the Communications Workers Union (CWU) said that the boycotts resulted in an overall downturn in food turnover by around 50%. Takings at Mount Pleasant, the biggest postal depot in Europe, were understood to be down by £19,000 for the week.
The CWU is concerned that job security agreements with the Post Office would be threatened under the new partnership arrangement if Quadrant was to lose the contract in the future, and it wants a guarantee that jobs will be protected.
Following the Quadrant deal, the CWU fears other Post Office support divisions may be sold off, and is balloting its members about a strike.
In a statement, the Post Office said that it has awarded Quadrant a five-and-a-half-year contract, which demonstrates its confidence in the company.
A spokesman added: "What companies can look into the future six years ahead? That's just the way the world is at the moment."
The Post Office is to announce its new partner next month. Sutcliffe and Gardner Merchant are tipped as likely candidates for the stake.