Leyland : Postmen's spat over 'meltdown'

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.lep.co.uk/news/postmen_s_spa ... _1_2819000" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Under pressure postmen say they are struggling to cope with longer rounds and have claimed it could lead to a “meltdown” in deliveries.

Workers at the Royal Mail depot in Leyland reckon changes to how post is delivered in the town, coupled with staff shortages, mean that mail is in danger of piling up and being delayed.

One Royal Mail worker, who has been based at the delivery office for a number of years, said: “The Leyland depot is in meltdown.

“Parcels and mail are left every day and people are going off on stress.

“They have made the rounds too big, so we cannot pick up the parcels.

“We have more people off now with stress than they have ever had before.

“They are asking people to go in on their days off to try to clear the mail but they are saying ‘I am not coming in’. It is impossible.”

The worker added problems had increased since they were stopped from using bicycles on their rounds last year.

He said: “Now you have posties in a van and if there are 40 or 50 parcels in a van, one does one part and another does another.

“It is the size of the round which is really causing the problem.

“The stress levels are unbelievable.

“It used to be a really good place to work.”

One Leyland businessman, who did not wish to be named, said there had been ongoing issues with mail arriving late at his firm or going to the wrong address lately.

He said: “We’re having problems with mail arriving at different times of the morning.

“Instead of 8am or 8.30am, it’s been 11am to 12pm.

“That’s been going on for a quite a period of time.

“We have also frequently got mail that should have gone elsewhere.”

The Communication Workers’ Union (CWU), which represents Royal Mail employees, said there had been “teething problems” with the longer rounds where workers go out in pairs.

But a spokesman added that meetings were being held with management this week and union representatives were hopeful these should address the issues and avoid any backlog of mail during the busy pre-Christmas period.

The CWU spokesman said: “It was probably the worst time of year to bring it in but we have got a meeting with management and they are going to put additional resources in.”

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “As part of Royal Mail’s £2bn investment in modernising its operations, changes are being made at delivery offices across the country to make them more efficient.

“When any such major change is implemented, some disruption is possible, but we have been doing everything we can to minimise any delays until the changes bed in.”

The Evening Post reported last year how postal workers had swapped bicycles for using vans and high-capacity trolleys to deliver mail in Leyland.

[Lincox]

Do we know who the union spokesman is, because it is plainly obvious he has no idea what teeth are.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Do we know who the union spokesman is, because it is plainly obvious he has no idea what teeth are.

I am afraid the BT2010 took his teeth away Page 35

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