The Communication Workers’ Union has set up a strike fund to support Isle of Man posties who have been taking industrial action.

Postal workers manned the picket line for a second time, from Thursday to Saturday last week, in a dispute over pay and changes to terms and conditions.

CWU deputy general secretary Terry Pullinger said the posties had received ’massive support’.

He said: ’We have set up a strike fund down here at headquarters and people have been giving generously. I’m sure it will help our members at some point in the Isle of Man.’

Mr Pullinger said the situation was ’strange ground’ for island posties who had not taken industrial action for 30 years.

He insisted this wasn’t about the union ’digging in’ and ’taking our people out on strike unnecessarily’. The union was responding pragmatically and recognising the need for change, he said.

But he said the union wanted phased change but was ’bitterly disappointed’ that it had been ’knocked back’ with ’very little movement from the employer’.

This was about ’dialling down’ terms and conditions and threatening employment, living standards and pension security, he said.