Life after (leaving) Royal Mail?
I accepted a VR package due to a site closure. I made the right choice, I think. But for me, life took a very sharp turning curve, where I learnt just how difficult and prejudiced the 'real jobs market' was/is, back in 2010. In fact, it was, and still is, an underestimated rats maze of obtructions, to just getting an interview! I have found that the organisations and companies who are 'crying out' the hardest for much needed new employees, and the very ones with the worst and hardest recruitment processes, literally shooting themselves in the foot! For any one situation, there will be pro's and con's. For me, poor mental health for some time, some poverty after limited finances ran out, and relocating from a dearly loved home area, not once....but three times! But the pro's, were eventually and slowly discovering a new talent and career (sadly short lived due to Covid pandemic) elsewhere where I decide my own hours and terms, lots of long postponed cycle touring and travelling, not needing to rush about in foul weather to get to work, or tolerate arrogant demands to do something I was already doing, and doing well, and watching my physical health improve once I had stopped prepping and hurling about 11kg mailsacks at a rate of 100 per hour. Oh, and although I was dubbed as being 'among the best workers on my shift', nobody bothered to give me any kind of courtesy farewell send off, like what so many other had had, but it still felt GREAT to walk out of those double doors for one last time, and leave behind me a very chaotic and unhealthy Mail Centre! These days, if I ever need to experience again, a few hundred people all eyeballing each other and watching critically each other over shoulders etc, I don't need Mail Centre work for that, I can recreate that by going to Bristol Temple Meads train station, platform 12!
The funny thing is, from time to time, my mind reflects on the good events I had during my RM years, and for some bizarre reason, actually misses it all. I suppose that is all part of the aging process!
KG.