Tonight at 5pm we are LIVE with a Royal Mail Delivery Members special with national officer Tony Bouch.

[Rommagic]

Some still doing six days a week at the moment.

[Pidleypoo]

Those 9 hour days your looking at about 50k steps.

In all weathers from freezing cold and raining to red hot in the summer.

I know people will mention those that work those days off but that’s a choice by them and in my experience no one can do that for very long, nearly all of them that I’ve known either quit or end up becoming someone that works their hours.

If you’ve got kids then you’re out of a job on that because the extra childcare costs are more than we make an hour.

These 9 hour days will also be incredibly heavy and your call rate very high.

If you’ve no toilets how tf are you regularly working that long of a day without causing some serious damage.

For me it’s a very stupid idea and I think those that chose it would regret it with the new way of working pretty quickly imo.

As I said above , I’d have to find a new job.

[kazardaimenu]

9 day fought night would mean 8 and a bit hour days. Not too bad if you’re done before dark in December.

[Jaggs]

I do not want a 9 hour day.

That’s absolutely stupid.

If the aim was to reduce fatigue then that idea is insane.

My thoughts exactly.

So are RM planning the workload around a 9 day fortnight and what happens when an office votes and rejects that duty structure?

That’s if we really get the choice.

I’m not sure we will and whatever comes out of these trails is what will be imposed imo.

I looked at the 7 duty structures and the only viable one was the 9 day fortnight.

If we do get the choice I’d be trying to convince people to go for that.

If it’s a 9 hour 15 minute day then I’m looking for another job because I know I can’t do that every week.

Have the 7 duty structures been put online somewhere as I'm yet to see them

[yellowbelly]

Have the 7 duty structures been put online somewhere as I'm yet to see them

On this thread, the image attachments in the first post: viewtopic.php?f=87&t=115645

[norris9]

The duty patterns available to select are:

-Two Saturdays off in any six weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 8 Saturdays off per year.
-Two Saturdays off in any five weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 10 Saturdays off per week.
-9-day fortnight.
-4-day week option.
-Wallington, plus an extra Saturday off.
-13 working days out of 18 (Monday to Saturday) with 1 Saturday off every 3 weeks (only available to drivers).
-17 working days every 24 (Monday to Saturday) with 2 Saturdays off every 4 weeks.

[Perseus]

The duty patterns available to select are:

-Two Saturdays off in any six weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 8 Saturdays off per year.
-Two Saturdays off in any five weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 10 Saturdays off per week.
-9-day fortnight.
-4-day week option.
-Wallington, plus an extra Saturday off.
-13 working days out of 18 (Monday to Saturday) with 1 Saturday off every 3 weeks (only available to drivers).
-17 working days every 24 (Monday to Saturday) with 2 Saturdays off every 4 weeks.

What's the catch with that one? Is it non driving staff only, given the one above it is drivers only?

[norris9]

I would assume the 9 day fortnight would be the one most offices go for.

A 9 day fortnight would mean something close to an 8 hour 15 minute day (37 hour contract) and close to an 8 hour 50 minute day (40 hour contract)

A 4 day week would mean a 9 hour 15 minute day (37 hour contract) and a 10 hour day (40 hour contract)....so surely no chance people vote for this.

The other options in that list don't mean anything to me. It's easier to understand a 9 day fortnight or a 4 day week.

[A2B]

I think our office would go for the Wallington plus but our manager says they would be able to veto some of the options

[ted_e_bear]

I think our office would go for the Wallington plus but our manager says they would be able to veto some of the options

Here we go, already managers thinking they can do as they please before it's even started, some of the options aren't that practical or attractive anyway, I think at least one has to be 100% drivers in the office, others have to be everyone full time.

Oh yeah I suspect one aspect they'll try to veto is having a repick which is also written into the process, can't be upsetting certain people.

[Pidleypoo]

I think our office would go for the Wallington plus but our manager says they would be able to veto some of the options

Here we go, already managers thinking they can do as they please before it's even started, some of the options aren't that practical or attractive anyway, I think at least one has to be 100% drivers in the office, others have to be everyone full time

I’ve said this in another thread , we won’t get to pick the duty structure when it actually rolls out nation wide and will instead be picked by managers.

Some of you will be bitterly disappointed when you end up on a1/6 which is what ( according to Tony Bouch ) the vast majority of the workforce have anyway.

I don’t want that to be true and I hope each office gets the choice but I really don’t see it happening.

[norris9]

A breakdown of each option:

Two Saturdays off in any six weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 8 Saturdays off per year.
Two Saturdays off in any five weeks (in addition to a regular rest day during the week). Extra 10 Saturdays off per year.

I am not fully understanding this. During the weeks in which you have a Saturday off you also get a weekday off? so is it a 4 day week during those weeks? or are they simply giving us extra Saturdays off instead of a weekday? Sounds like the former, so this includes 4 day weeks every 5 or 6 weeks? Ok - sounds interesting.


9-day fortnight

If you like Saturdays off then a 9 day fortnight = 1 in 4 Saturdays off + you work just 4 days every other week. A 37 hour workers day would be 8 hours 15 mins.


4-day week

Is absolutely mental. 10 hour days for 40 hour workers. 9 hour 15 minute days for 37 hour workers.


Wallington, plus an extra Saturday off

I also think Wallingtons are mental. Working 6 day weeks for 5 weeks then getting the 6th week off. Those 5 weeks must drag.


17 working days every 24 (Monday to Saturday) with 2 Saturdays off every 4 weeks

Sounds like this is something like - working Mon-Fri, then doing a 6 day week Mon-Sat, then a 6 day week Mon-Sat, then back to a Mon-Fri week....so again, more weeks that drag.

[postslippete]

The benefits of the extra days off far outweigh the longer deliveries in my opinion.
You get used to the longer delivery spans and look forward to the long weekends.
Your life is no longer dictated to by your work life.
On a four day week now it is possible to go away every third weekend for four days if you wish because of the length of the break.
Would you do a quarter of walk at work every day now to get an extra fifty days off a year.
That's the way you got to look at it.
Offices that have four day weeks are never quick to give them up.
Increases earning opportunities too.
You can work two rest days in a week instead of one.
For those that want that.
Fatigue isn't a big a problem as you think because of the extra 50 rest days.
If anything it improves.
It the way forward.

Imho the 4 day weeks are best served to posties if there are either more indoor work via IPS/sorting OR if there is a shorter working week - do you remember the CWU's drive to 35 a few years back? This is a good opportunity to put forward these proposals now while they still have a chance to "shape" these USO reforms

The CWU caved in to RM's demands in the last agreement and came up with seasonal variations which means that we actually work MORE hours in winter. Longer delivery spans are not the answer to reducing fatigue. Everything is being monitored from walking speeds to start and finish times with the net result that more posties feel more emotionally and physically drained than ever before. We keep being told that it is a business but where is the incentive to working extra days with all of this in place? The faster posties don't want to work any faster because they are given extra work to do to make up their hours and the slower posties are absolutely crushed and are slowly being forced out of the business by bullying managers.

[kazardaimenu]

I think our office would go for the Wallington plus but our manager says they would be able to veto some of the options

You’d think it would be easier to staff a 9 dayer rather than a 1 in 6 and with rounds going out less often it would suit them too. But yet again they keep finding ways to make the job more difficult for us and them.

[postmanpatscat2]

Who cares about Saturdays off lol, we knew we was sacrificeng them years ago when we signed up!!

I'd be more concerned about getting the pay we deserve, proper sick pay, fair rounds/workload.. Not an extra 8 Saturdays off a year ya simpleton.