Latest Mount Pleasant Bulletin 24/4/14

[anna]

Hi there!
Here is the latest Mount Bulletin for this week 24/04.

MISDIRECTED
What about this redirection of mail last week? They brought the work in, but management didn’t think about who was going to do it. There wasn’t even an authorisation for “overtime” (whether we’d have agreed to do it or not, is another question). Anyway, we at least got a chance to see the managers’ headless chicken show again!

MORE HANDS IN HERE!
Of course it doesn’t take a redirection of work for things to go crazy, since almost every day we’ve got a very “normal” shortage of processing hands.
That said, we seriously object to being pushed around so bosses can appear to be sorting sorting. Especially when part-timers are denied permanent full-time. If managers don’t understand, we’d be happy to remind them who sorts what in here.

ESPECIALLY ON MONDAYS!
As for the recurrent problem every Monday - you’d think they’d have applied themselves to solving this one: because if they want to clear, they have to get their own hands dirty! Wouldn’t it be simple to reorganise the duties so our numbers are balanced across the week? But no... for these guys, apparently nothing is simple.

THE WHOLE WEEKEND IS “HOLIDAY”
At least the night-shift got premium rates for part of Good Friday night, but what about Deliveries who had to do Saturday as usual and on basic rate? In the middle of the Easter holiday?

RESHUFFLE
With RM management so famous for its cronyism, the advent of a new boss for HMP will probably bring a few other new faces along with it... Meaning that others will disappear. Not that we care. But some managers are getting nervous: maybe the new boss won’t like them? We suggest they organise a “Mount’s Got Talent” contest to show themselves off, with B the B selling tickets...

HYPER HOPPING (AND WE’RE STILL HOPPING MAD)
Speaking of Bob, sadly he hasn’t been bitten by the Easter bunny, so there’s little relief from his hot breath at the back of our necks. Not that the other managers have shown any Easter cheer, either. But never mind, we live in hope.

FROM EC TO WC
Apparently part of the management musical chairs involves shifting round the EC managers. And one of them is to go down (the) WC. We wonder how that’s going to feel? For us and him...

WE’D LIKE TO GET OUT ... BUT...
It is certainly getting too hot in the kitchen for a lot of us. And we hear there are still EVRs on offer for Processing, so we could go. But to be honest, it’s not enough money - and how can we, if we’re not sure that RM is going to replace us?

BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS...
Cleaners would like to thank Romec managers for giving us such exceptionally wonderful working conditions - and for the latest golden “action plan” re-sign. In fact, we’re so pleased with them, that we’d like to give them back some of what they give us. See above.

FREE FOR WHAT?
In case you didn’t know, a PDMR is a “Person Discharging Managerial Responsibility”. Which may sound a bit disgusting. But apparently, it warrants getting 116 free RM shares! For doing what exactly, we’re not sure. But definitely it’s not for getting the job done! We haven’t seen any PDRMs pushing a delivery trolley or sorting letters or packets - ever!

MIS-LEAD STANDARDS?
So much for golden standards. Romec just can’t get over the fact that it lost the POL contract. So much so that it is now involved in endless self-analysis. It even felt it had to write a Q&A about it! But funnily enough, without addressing the problems of the engineers who’re being left high and dry.
And guess what? Romec called the union officials from CWU and Unite, to help it find a way to make itself more attractive... i.e., even cheaper!?

ATTAX ON DRIVERS
According to the Daily Star newspaper, (seen on the royalmailchat), Somerset RM delivery drivers got parking tickets after their permits were delayed in the post.
The Star thought it was funny. But it’s no joke the way councils everywhere are dishing out parking fines and tickets like confetti, to make up their revenue, after the huge central government cuts to local budgets. It’s a tax on drivers.
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[SpacePhoenix]

THE WHOLE WEEKEND IS “HOLIDAY”
At least the night-shift got premium rates for part of Good Friday night, but what about Deliveries who had to do Saturday as usual and on basic rate? In the middle of the Easter holiday?

It's not all a holiday, only Good Friday and Easter Monday. The rest is just a normal working day

[anna]

I think the point was that it isn't considered a holiday but since it's de facto one for most people, so why shouldn't it get paid at premium rate. Anyway all Saturdays used to be paid time+half long, long ago...?