Are we doomed??

[A2B]

We were doomed from the day the company stopped being state owned.

[reddevils]

But it is privatised so we have to deal with the problems that privatisation has brought. It makes no sense to look back at the good old
days because that does nothing to protect our future.

Royal Mail and the other couriers are not apples and oranges unfortunately, that is the problem.

We are being dragged into the race to the bottom because we are in the same industry competing for the same contracts.

The only distinction we have is that we deliver letters which are in terminal decline and we have a nationwide infrastructure which the other courier businesses don't have.

The problem is that the letters don't deliver profit anymore unlike the good old days which is not something the other couriers have to be concerned with. In addition to this instead of having a nationwide infrastructure the other couriers refuse to deliver to specific areas or use the royal mail network
for unprofitable destinations. They also subcontract and use franchises to divulge responsibility of local hubs to other small businesses so they don't have to pay for rent, land, business rates etc.

The problem with some of the responses is that they use arguments about it being a service and how royal mail used to be. None of this helps. The reality has changed. We need to focus on the future.

[postslippete]

Martin , so what is the end game then , because I for one cannot work any harder for any longer for any less money !

Exactly my point

We all know about the gig economy but if RM has already reduced OT, increased workloads, introduced shared vans, revised duties and is asking fewer people to do more work, and that still leaves the business forecasting substantial losses, then what evidence is there that any further reductions to the lower hanging fruit is ever going to solve the problem?

The CWU has already mentioned that one of the main reasons why thousands of new entrants leave the business is because of the two-tier workforce, conditions and pay - and that still hasn't been resolved! Even if the Government creates any sort of level playing field in the delivery sector, will that alone solve the company's problems or does it also need to address the wider issues that might be affecting their business model?

Because don't forget that RM has many other costs. Martin will know, if he has been through the books that there are many things that we are not privy to. Such as the significant investments in automation, property, vehicles, debt, restructuring, management, bonuses.... etc

Suggesting that we are unprofitable because we are not operating a gig economy model risks treating labour costs as the root cause, when RM's financial performance depends on far more than just frontline labour costs. Take the pandemic as an example. The gig economy i.e. Evri, Yodel, DPD and Amazon were all operating then yet RM experienced an exceptional period financially because parcel demand exploded. And this was before RM introduced new staff on inferior pay, terms and cons. In fact, it was during that period that a certain Czech billionaire first began buying shares in the company.....I wonder if he looked at the same books that Martin looked at?

See, sometimes I look at the workloads now and they are not that different from the pandemic with Yorks stacked with parcels, duties under pressure and mail not going out for days. So perhaps the question isn't simply whether RM's labour costs are too high. Perhaps the more important question is one that needs repeating:

Why is a business that has already extracted so much more productivity from its frontline workforce still isn't producing the financial results expected?

[tramssirhc]

Letters have always been subsidised. Rural postal workers used to undertake other work whilst delivering and collecting to make the job pay. What we see today is the demand of the industry for greater profits. The industry is dominated by a handful of multi-national companies. It is an oligopoly. What we cannot accept is a trade union official making claims that our jobs are too expensive through false comparisons of cost that have no data to prove the costs.

This isn't a romantic reminiscence of a job that never existed. Anyone who thinks there was a golden era has never done the job. We've been exploited ever since the postage stamp was struck.

[tramssirhc]

Martin , so what is the end game then , because I for one cannot work any harder for any longer for any less money !

Exactly my point

We all know about the gig economy but if RM has already reduced OT, increased workloads, introduced shared vans, revised duties and is asking fewer people to do more work, and that still leaves the business forecasting substantial losses, then what evidence is there that any further reductions to the lower hanging fruit is ever going to solve the problem?

The CWU has already mentioned that one of the main reasons why thousands of new entrants leave the business is because of the two-tier workforce, conditions and pay - and that still hasn't been resolved! Even if the Government creates any sort of level playing field in the delivery sector, will that alone solve the company's problems or does it also need to address the wider issues that might be affecting their business model?

Because don't forget that RM has many other costs. Martin will know, if he has been through the books that there are many things that we are not privy to. Such as the significant investments in automation, property, vehicles, debt, restructuring, management, bonuses.... etc

Suggesting that we are unprofitable because we are not operating a gig economy model risks treating labour costs as the root cause, when RM's financial performance depends on far more than just frontline labour costs. Take the pandemic as an example. The gig economy i.e. Evri, Yodel, DPD and Amazon were all operating then yet RM experienced an exceptional period financially because parcel demand exploded. And this was before RM introduced new staff on inferior pay, terms and cons. In fact, it was during that period that a certain Czech billionaire first began buying shares in the company.....I wonder if he looked at the same books that Martin looked at?

See, sometimes I look at the workloads now and they are not that different from the pandemic with Yorks stacked with parcels, duties under pressure and mail not going out for days. So perhaps the question isn't simply whether RM's labour costs are too high. Perhaps the more important question is one that needs repeating:

Why is a business that has already extracted so much more productivity from its frontline workforce still isn't producing the financial results expected?

Because it's looking for surplus value and not productivity or efficiency and the CWU is colluding in that search. DM26 certainly isn't the place to look.

[tramssirhc]

Did Martin agree to this? https://www.printweek.com/content/news/ ... 25-average

[reddevils]

Did Martin agree to this? https://www.printweek.com/content/news/ ... 25-average

Pricing is a business decision, not the unions.

It is concerning though, I had hoped the CWU/ Martin would have something to say about this.

Unreliability of delivery and increasing costs to send mail are hastening the decline of mail even further. The cynic in me
thinks this is exactly what its designed to do.

[scotchy1962]

If anyone remembers RM state they don't prioritise parcels over mail.
The companies are going to complain to ofcom, who in turn should be asking why parcel prices aren't up as well.
All they are doing is pushing the letters into the proverbial grave while making sure the parcels are ok.
You personally aren't doomed, but letters are.
Maybe PM Andy will sit up and take notice, problem is he already has enough to fix.

[funkflex55]

Nearly 2 billion has been paid in shareholder dividends since privatisation. All that extra work posties did during the pandemic just led to even more payouts.

The company will plead poverty, continuously make cuts, lie about financial results and tell the public it's doing it's best.

What do you think would happen if the company started making loads of money. I can be sure the posties would see no benefit. The wealth would be extracted and minimal investment would be made.

Right now, posties are at full tilt yet RM want more. Martin Walsh, I don't give a f**k if the company isn't even around in 5 years. None of us will make any meaningful gains either way. The cuts will continue, the lies will continue and rich will get richer whilst the posties get poorer.

[Acca Dacca]

The difference is that I am responsible for circa 100 thousand members and have seen the “ books” and challenges! I am not looking at it from a political point that all employers are lying.

The fact is companies which don’t make money do not survive long.

Evri are charging £2.38 for a 48 hour product because they have a self employed driving model. Royal Mail need the cost to be £2.76 to break even not make a profit.

Almost every other competitor operates the same model , the company does not pay national insurance costs, they pay per parcel successfully delivered with no pension, annual leave , sick leave , van costs or disiel costs.

This is why more companies are moving to the cheaper model or are demanding Royal Mail reduce their parcel delivery costs or they will go elsewhere.

Parcel traffic is still increasing in Royal Mail but the revenue from parcels is not increasing at the same rate.

This is why it is essential that we get a level playing field which means if a Evri driver works for just company they are not self employed they should be employed.

Evri who are owned by the German company cannot do what they do in this country in their own as it is illegal.

The real concern is if we do not get a level playing field by 2028 when the legal protections are up for review that EP/ Royal Mail may operate the same model of owner drivers to compete.

Anyone who understands the challenges which all postal administrations are having will not simply offer cheap shorts and bury your head in the sand as it don’t suit your political agenda.

If many companies think we are too expensive and would rather use the Evri model to deliver their parcels - why is our parcel traffic increasing?

[norris9]

These are probably our options if and when it happens...

-Buy your own van and deliver parcels with no paid holiday, no national insurance, no sick pay. (It's likely you'd do it based out of a large parcel hub).

-Remain as part of a smaller workforce delivering letters, possibly under a franchise operator and possibly with worse terms and conditions.

-Take VR and call it a day.

[qwerty2]

So no job for non drivers 2028

That might cheer up a few non driver haters in my office

Think it’s funny 8-9000 people lose their jobs - drivers will go as well - half the delivery staff would get cut - might be you

[tramssirhc]

Did Martin agree to this? https://www.printweek.com/content/news/ ... 25-average

Pricing is a business decision, not the unions.

In which case the CWU can stop refering to the business as theirs.

[reddevils]

In which case the CWU can stop refering to the business as theirs.
[/quote]

I've not heard the CWU refer to the business as theirs.
The members are theirs to protect.
So if the business makes a decision or is considering a change that affects its members the union should get involved. This can involve all
aspects of the business.

Btw I support your view on reducing management and taking account of the obscene dividends that were paid out for example during covid I also do think Royal Mail exaggerate their financial position. There has been lots of investment in lockers, parcel hubs and bonuses which has cost hundreds of millionsof pounds.
I am not naive I don't fully trust what the business are saying, However I do think the situation is perilous and I do think the Union are in a tough battle. Mail will decline further and the other parcel businesses aren't going away. The postal industry has never faced such challenges in all its history.

[postslippete]

If many companies think we are too expensive and would rather use the Evri model to deliver their parcels - why is our parcel traffic increasing?

And as an additional point - if we are having to lower our prices on parcels to win or retain contracts, is this strategy really paying off?

Imagine delivering 300 parcels at £2 profit = £600, compared with delivering 200 parcels at £4 profit = £800. RM could be doing more work for less margin.

Martin is arguing that RM needs to get closer to Evri's cost base because they are cheaper, but there are plenty of businesses that compete on quality rather than price. Take DPD which has built its reputation on reliability, reliable delivery windows, tracking and customer service. It's not the cheapest but it wins business because it's reliable and people pay more for a better service. Same goes for UPS, which is one of the more expensive parcel carriers.

RM 's own slogan used to be "the UK's best and most trusted delivery company" so rather than trying to compete solely on cost perhaps the company should be looking at rebuilding customer service as well as its industrial relations?