Royal Mail has announced plans to cut 2,500 head office and other supporting roles by the end of 2027

[POSTMAN]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwvgdld13e3eo

Royal Mail has announced plans to cut 2,500 head office and other supporting roles by the end of 2027 as it battles competition and falling demand for letter deliveries.

The cuts at the postal service will represent about 2% of the 131,000-strong workforce.

However, frontline postal workers - posties and drivers - are not part of the proposed restructuring.

Royal Mail said the workforce reduction, designed to improve efficiency, would be achieved through voluntary redundancies and people choosing to leave the company.

"These proposed changes remove duplication and allow us to invest further in the service we deliver for our customers," said chief executive Alistair Cochrane.

"The proposed changes will not be easy, but they are an important part of building a stronger, simpler and future-ready Royal Mail for our customers and colleagues."

It said it was in formal consultation with its unions, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) and Unite CMA, over the plans.

The CWU said despite reassurances that there would be no compulsory redundancies, the announcement was "further evidence of a company that is demoralising staff and failing to deliver for customers and the wider community".

'We urge the government to confront the reality of a collapsing Royal Mail and intervene to save this national institution," deputy general secretary Martin Walsh told the BBC.

Royal Mail has been struggling to meet its delivery targets for first and second class post, and has been fined by the regulator for missing targets in recent years.

Just over 75% of first class letters were delivered on time in the year to the end of March, far off its target of 93%.

Fewer people are sending letters, and the company has repeatedly said that its Universal Service Obligation (USO) – a legal requirement to deliver letters six days a week to every address in the UK – is outdated and needs reform.

Royal Mail, which is a separate from the Post Office, has faced years of criticism from politicians and the public over the slowness of its letter delivery.

This year, more than 100 MPs have written to regulator Ofcom and the business secretary asking for something to be done about the poor service their constituents say they are receiving.

The firm has said it is investing £500m over the next five years as part of its improvement plan.

Royal Mail is owned by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky's EP Group, after his takeover was approved by shareholders at the end of April last year.

Kretinsky has previously said he will not walk away from the requirement to deliver letters throughout the UK six days a week, as long as he is running the service.

[POSTMAN]

https://www.cwu.org/news/cwu-response-t ... -job-cuts/

CWU response to Royal Mail job cuts

Commenting on the announcement Royal Mail will be cutting 2,500 jobs as part of an organisational review Martin Walsh, Deputy General Secretary (Postal), Communication Workers Union (CWU) said:

‘Despite the union being reassured that this announcement will not impact any frontline workers, and will involve no compulsory redundancies, these proposals will impact approximately 200 CWU-represented jobs in administration and revenue protection.

‘We will be meeting management to discuss this announcement, which is further evidence of a company that is demoralising staff and failing to deliver for customers and the wider community.

‘We urge the government to confront the reality of a collapsing Royal Mail and intervene to save this national institution.’

[twoloops]

Reading the comments on X to this announcement everyone hates us posties

[Wullie10]

Offer them a delivery or sack them

[ted_e_bear]

Reading the comments on X to this announcement everyone hates us posties

Just had a look, what a set of f***ing idiots some comments are barely readable making no sense, loads obviously haven't even read the headline that says head office and supporting roles, jeez

[POSTMAN]

https://www.cwu.org/ltb/ltb-266-26-roya ... ob-losses/

LTB 266/26 – Royal Mail Announcement of Up to 2,500 Job Losses
No. 266/26

7th October 2026

Dear Colleagues,

Royal Mail Announcement of Up to 2,500 Job Losses

Branches will by now be aware that Royal Mail has today announced a programme, to be delivered in two phases, which could lead to up to 2,500 job losses across the business.

Royal Mail has confirmed to the CWU that this announcement will not impact frontline Operational Postal Grades (OPGs) working in Delivery, Processing, Distribution or Parcelforce.

During phase one the majority of the proposed job losses relate to managerial grades. There are approximately 183 potential job impacts affecting CWU-grade employees, primarily within Revenue Protection and administrative roles across central and support functions.

While these announcements will undoubtedly cause concern for members in the affected areas, Royal Mail has confirmed that there will be no compulsory redundancies. Redeployment measures will be applied in full accordance with the Managing The Surplus Framework (MTSF).

The CWU will meet with senior management tomorrow to discuss the implications for CWU-grade employees. We will provide a further update to branches and members once those discussions have taken place.

We have also been advised that phase two will focus on operations and Contact Centres, alongside any remaining changes within central and support functions. Any proposals arising from this phase will be subject to separate consultation, with any subsequent changes not expected to be implemented until 2027.

We believe this announcement is further evidence that the company continues to face significant financial and operational challenges that could threaten its long-term future.

This is precisely why the CWU has consistently called on the Government to take a strategic interest in the future of the postal industry and work alongside the company and the union to establish a new vision for Royal Mail that secures its future in the interests of workers, customers and communities.

That vision must address the ongoing quality-of-service issues, create a level playing field within the parcels market, reform Ofcom’s regulatory framework, and tackle the growing recruitment and retention challenges facing the industry.

Branches are asked to reassure members that there must be meaningful consultation on the implications of these proposed job losses. Those discussions will begin in earnest tomorrow, and the CWU will fully represent the interests of all affected members throughout the process.

Attached to this LTB is a press release.

Further developments will be reported as they arise.

Any enquiries relating to the content of this LTB should be referred to the DGSP department hford@cwu.org.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Walsh

Deputy General Secretary (Postal)

Andy Furey

Assistant Secretary

Davie Robertson

Assistant Secretary

[qwerty2]

And so it begins.....
Need to get rid of excess managers

[TopperGas]

So what happened to the great "reset" of the RM/CWU relationship highlighted on Workplace earlier this week, if MW is now calling for the Government to intervene in the running of RM?

Once again it looks like RM are running rings around the CWU!

The CWU should have just stood back and let RM introduce ODM and completely destroy postal deliveries nationwide.