To shiver under leaden skies on an early morning picket line at a soulless industrial estate is to accept that one’s victories, if they come, will be small.

The 30 hardy souls stamping their feet for warmth outside the Leeds mail centre, one of the Royal Mail’s largest depots in northern England, waited for hours before the big moment came. Clutching posters, placards and a banner, they watched with resignation as vans and cars cruised past en route to the giant warehouse unit. Some were driven by managers and non-Communication Workers Union clerical and administrative staff, others by postal workers whose turn to strike will come today.

The great moment — greeted by cheers and no little amazement — came when the driver of a DHL delivery van was persuaded to leave the site without dropping off his consignment of mail. The driver was politely asked not to cross an official picket line. “That’s good enough for me,” he replied, promptly heading off with a vehicle still fully laden.

It was not a moment destined to bring the Royal Mail’s senior management to its knees, but it cheered up Pauline Bell, 53, who has worked in the postal service for 15 years. “This strike is not about pay. For me, it’s about the fact that week after week they’re cutting staffing levels and cutting the hours but still expecting the same amount of work to be done,” she said.

In Bristol, strikers still found time for laughs. At 5.30am Dave Smith, an HGV driver, chortled to his 15 colleagues. “Listen to this,” he told them. “Chris has sent me a text, ‘W J P G K. I just wanted to send you a few letters before the strike started’.”

Stuart Wilson, who works at Bristol Regional Distribution Centre, said strikes now were a different beast from their 1970s and 80s incarnation. Gone were the burning braziers, the bull horns and aggressive shouting.

“In the old days picket lines used to be all about intimidation of people who wanted to break the strikes. It is not like that anymore. We can’t intimidate anyone so we are out here to show how deeply we feel. We ain’t doing it for fun but it can turn into a bit of a social. You have people to talk to share your problems with,” he said.

There was little menace in London either. At the Mount Pleasant Sorting Office, the country’s largest mail centre, a subdued gathering waved in acknowledgement at supportive toots from passing drivers.

Colin Higbee, who has worked for the Royal Mail for 21 years, said this was the 16th day since June that his colleagues in the capital had formed a picket line. A fellow striker attributed the relatively low number of strikers, which never rose above 40, to strike apathy.

To a man, they stressed their resolution and unity.

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