16/09/26 Mount Pleasant Bulletin

[jimallen]

Hi, here's the Mount Pleasant bulletin of 16 September, sorry for the delay. The one on 30 September will follow soon!

DUMs FROM CUCKOOLAND
Monday was the first day of the new system on
Deliveries. All of us are now expected to work some
Saturdays, walks have been reorganised making
them longer and heavier, start and finish times have
changed... In a nutshell, DUMs are trying to make
every one of us do more, in an attempt to cut jobs.
They call their working system Delivery Method 2026
- we call it Delivery Madness 2026!

ANOTHER MOUNT IN THE MOUNT
In fact, over the summer, the Delivery Madness 26
system, "jointly agreed" by union officials and RM
managers, was implemented in over two-thirds of the
~1,300 DOs. And we can read on Royal Mail Chat
how workmates around the country describe the
chaos DM26 has created... Like at the Mount, the
result was predictable: mountains of undelivered mail
and parcels everywhere.

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
What a sight we had in August, when we spotted that
RM delivery van just outside the Mount, in the middle
of the road, with a piece of paper under the
windscreen wiper saying "Broken down". You could
stick that piece of paper anywhere in RM!

EVERYBODY SHOULD SEE
During Work Time Sleeping this Tuesday, managers
told us we can't take pictures inside HMP and post
them on social media... And what are they afraid of?
That we might expose the right royal mess they've
created throughout Processing, Deliveries,
Distribution...?

THEIR HEADS DEEP IN SAND
Over the summer, in Processing, managers were
short of workers in just about every area of HMP. So
much so, that they were worried the works would
grind to a halt - we even hear they'd like to meet with
the local union officials to discuss the shortage of
hands... But what's there to discuss? If they want
mail processed, more workers are needed, simples!

MORE LIKE TORTOISES
Managers are trying to put pressure on us to clear
Processing work... as if we could grow extra arms
and legs and do the jobs of several people. Well, we
aren't octopuses - in fact, we'll be choosing our own
pace!

LOST THEIR PRINCIPLES?
In August, we received a WhatsApp message, sent by
the local union, advertising overtime for the August
bank holiday. So obviously, managers can't find
enough of us - even to cover duties through
overtime. But why are union officials helping
managers find people to work it??

IN THE BIN!
These white sleeves are a real hazard: the borders
break, become sharp and cut our arms. Managers
tell us that these sleeves are more durable than the
red ones - but why should we allow them to save on
their sleeve-costs at our expense? Our arms are
irreplaceable, and we intend to keep them cut-free!

A MONSTROUS EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW
The Parcel Sorting Monster is behaving a little better
now that temperatures are back to normal... Because
when it was over 30 degrees indoors, it kept breaking
down - no matter how many portable fans managers
put on to blow (hot) air around in an attempt to cool
it down. So next summer, we can follow the
Monster's example: we'll stop too, when it's too hot!

CONQUERING THE MOUNT
We miss the big old union room upstairs, where the
various courses (English, computer skills, etc.) were
held. Now due to all the new(ish) offices, the union
room is squeezed into a tiny corner... so that
managers can pretend they've given us some space?
This isn't good enough!

MISSING THEM
We are shocked and upset by the number of our
workmates who died during the summer. They will
be sorely missed. It's certainly the case that the
conditions of work here - and night shift work - can
shorten your life. This is why it should be mandatory
for RM to offer regular, real physical health checks -
including cardio, blood pressure and, as in the old
days, a chest x-ray!

HEALTH COMES FIRST
There used to be an occupational health nurse here
who at least would check our blood pressure.
Instead, management tell us we need to go
somewhere else and in our own time! No way! We
want proper checks back at the Mount!

PAYING MORE FOR LESS
We read in the press that, on 5 October, RM is going
to increase its prices for wholesale mailing used by
the NHS by... +25%! When the NHS already spent
£100m on postage last year alone, for appointment
letters that arrive too late, anyway…