Postal staff mark end of an era as centre shuts

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POSTAL workers gathered to mark the end of an era as the Cowley Mail Centre closed its doors for good.

There was bitterness on the part of union leaders, as well as a feeling of uncertainty among workers now joining the ranks of the Oxford unemployed.

Derek Williams, 45, from Swinburne Road, Oxford, worked at the centre for 25 years and accepted redundancy rather than the chance to work at a new mail centre in Swindon, which will now be responsible for sorting Oxford’s mail.

He said: “I’m very sad, not so much for myself, but for the people I have worked with.

“I’m hoping to start my own carpentry business, so for me it’s an opportunity. Otherwise I would have been at the centre until I retired.”

Leon Price, 34, of Normandy Crescent, Oxford, said: “I’m leaving because going to Swindon was not an option for me as I have a young family and I would be getting back too late. I’m looking at the local jobs market but there is not much out there. I have enough money to last a couple of months, but if I don’t find something it won’t be a very good Christmas.

“The main thing I’m going to miss is the fact that I was working somewhere people cared and I feel privileged to have worked with them. I don’t think I will find anywhere else like it.”

The history of the Royal Mail in Oxford stretches back to 1635 with the sorting office established in Becket Street in 1920, before moving to the Oxford Business Park North 10 years ago.

In recent years there have been several strikes and Oxford built up a reputation as a hotbed of union activity.

A total of 450 jobs have gone at the centre with about 50 taking jobs in Swindon, while 50 more have become postmen.

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What about the other 350?