Post undelivered as RM staff in Basingstoke work-to-rule

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Post undelivered as Royal Mail staff in Basingstoke work-to-rule

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A DISPUTE over workloads at the Royal Mail office in Basingstoke has still not been resolved.

As reported in Monday’s Gazette, around 200 staff from the delivery office in Priestley Road met with a representative from the Communication Workers Union (CWU) on July 1, and agreed to work-to-rule by coming in on time, taking their breaks and finishing on time.

As a result, some undelivered post was brought back to the office. According to Val Bodden, a spokeswoman for Royal Mail, managers went out to make sure customers received their mail – but a postman has told The Gazette, this is not true. The worker, who did not want to be identified, said: “It makes out that the managers saved the day by going out delivering the post. They didn’t go out at all. We were told to put it back.


“The stuff I brought back was put back in the frame for delivery the next day. We then had double the work the next day.”

He added: “We are still having extra workloads. They are wanting more and more, and not paying out.”

Andrew Moorey, branch secretary for South East CWU, said the problems had arisen at the Basingstoke office because managers are pressurising staff to take on more work than they can achieve. He added: “They (the workers) are feeling intimidated and afraid.”

Mr Moorey, who has taken the matter to the directors of Royal Mail, believes that managers at the Basingstoke office have not been releasing hours for overtime.

He added: “Management have put pressure on because they are taking the hours out of the system which should be put in to do the job properly. Our job is to make sure the workload is manageable.”

The CWU negotiated a national agreement with Royal Mail which states that staff should be paid for overtime.

Ms Bodden said: “Royal Mail is fully committed to the process of trying to resolve the concerns of postal workers based in Basingstoke, by continuing to follow the national jointly-agreed framework with the CWU.”