A seven-day long strike at a Merseyside postal depot is today over after Royal Mail bosses took the case to the High Court in London.
Posties at the Bootle and Seaforth delivery office on Trinity Industrial Estate this morning reluctantly returned to work following the week-long walkout.
The dispute surfaced following an allegation that a female manager made a racist or Islamophobic comment to a popular Muslim worker.
Upset colleagues said it referenced the negative stereotypes of Muslim women being 'under the thumb' of Muslim men.
Today, union bosses told the ECHO the strike had reached an end.
The case was listed at the Royal Court of Justice on Tuesday and a ruling reached that the un-balloted walkout in Bootle was unlawful.
Around 50 Royal Mail employees were back in work today.
The development, relayed to the picket line this morning at around 7am, was not well received, it is understood.
There are suggestions union bosses could still pursue a form of industrial action in the forthcoming weeks.
A spokesman for the Communication Workers Union said: "The case is continuing under official procedure.
"We will remain in work while the process is ongoing and until it reaches its conclusion."
The Muslim worker remains off sick.
The CWU wanted the female manager at the centre of the dispute to be moved to a different office, but that request has not been authorised.
Sources said many postmen and women were "unhappy" with the strike being halted.
Managers from around the country were earlier this week bussed into the Bootle depot to make sure mail was delivered while the picket lines were manned.
Union representatives described Royal Mail's stance as "bloody-minded" and said the strike "could have been avoided on Day One."
The Muslim worker, who went home upset after the alleged comment, has launched a bullying and harassment grievance.
Royal Mail was approached today for comment.
They were set to issue a statement this morning.
