When do you get your post?

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/When-do ... 4664824.jp

Published Date: 05 November 2008
By Tanya Scoon

* Disillusioned posties hit out over more junk mail and more work

MAILSHOTS being delivered before personal mail, parcels lying in the delivery office for days at a time and mail deliveries getting later and later ...
These are just a few of the problems being encountered by households in Kirkcaldy because of changes to the service.

Now local postmen and women have spoken to The Press saying they are disillusioned with the way the service is heading.

"When I first started out with the Royal Mail it was a good job. I had a real pride in my work and getting it done as quickly and efficiently as I could," said one local postman.

"All that has gone. It is a case of getting my round done within my allocated hours and going home.''

He claimed posties were delivering more and more junk mail, explaining: ''That's where the service can make money.''

He continued: ''We can have a load of A4 catalogues to deliver on top of our normal loads – where I used to have three or four bags of mail to deliver, I now have six to get through in the same time.

"We are having more and more duties put on us, for no more pay. People are just getting fed up of it."

The agreement for delivering the mailshots put out by companies, known as the Universal Service Obligation, means that this mail, which most people consider "junk" must be delivered every day, while parcels are dealt with under a separate delivery agreement.

"I've seen parcels sitting there day after day because they are bigger and have to be delivered by a van, and there isn't one there to do it," said another postman.

"If they don't have time, then the parcels are left lying. If it is busy again the next day, they could be left again.

"If you have ordered your Christmas presents or a special birthday present, there is no guarantee it will arrive in time."

And he said that mail deliveries were getting later for many people because the postmen were going in to work and the mail has not been sorted.

"There have been so many cuts that all you need is for one or two people to be off sick and the mail is not ready for you.

'' You often then have to sort it yourself and that means you don't start your actual deliveries until later."

Another experienced Kirkcaldy postman said that because the Royal Mail were only offering 22-hour contracts it was becoming more difficult to recruit people interested in making it a career.

"They are just getting people who are not really interested and who don't hang around."

Willie Marshall, branch secretary for the CWU said: "We are aware that there are ongoing problems which we are working with management to try to resolve. We feel that if we were more involved in the planning process then these problems would not be happening."

A Royal Mail spokeswoman said; "We are operating in a highly competitive market and with increasing competition for the services we provide, in order to compete in the open market place we need to operate as efficiently as possible.

"Kirkcaldy Delivery Office implemented an office revision a few weeks ago and did experience some bedding in problems. These have now been rectified and all parcels are being delivered on time."

[F0zziebear]

Typical slack journalism. To put in a title that personal mail is being left behind at the expense of junk mail is in the extreme an outright lie and a distortion of the truth.

Large parcels are not delivered by walking postmen, but have to be taken out by van. If there isn't a van then the parcel cannot be delivered. The walking postman will take out their delivery of which there is direct mail and personal mail.

So how is that a deliberate move to stop personal mail?

Secondly at the end of the article you find out that the DO put in a reivison and unsurprisingly there were teething problems. Unsurprisingly a postie is being worked harder.

I am not condoning the implementation of the/a revision and the reasons behind it, but I do consistently get fed-up by journalists who do not bother to get their facts right.

I've only ever had one national newspaper get in touch after I wrote a response to an article so that they could properly understand the RM operation.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

The problem in my opinion is RMs autocratic approach to change, either like it or lump it (locally referred to as if you don't like what is happening - leave). To date I have not heard of anyone on the front line of DOs and MCs being approached asking for their views on the changes. Locally the Managers are expected to implement the changes without it appears making any changes they feel may be needed. Its like AL and AC (and their advisers) seem to want everyone to fit into their pre-conceived boxes of how the system works.

I honestly believe that if they really did consult and discuss with the Union both nationally and locally, rather than pass decrees and inform stakeholders when decisions have already been made, then there would be less frustration amongst the front line staff and therefore less people resorting to telling their local papers and perhaps less resistance to change.

[Broxi51]

Typical slack journalism. To put in a title that personal mail is being left behind at the expense of junk mail is in the extreme an outright lie and a distortion of the truth.

Large parcels are not delivered by walking postmen, but have to be taken out by van. If there isn't a van then the parcel cannot be delivered. The walking postman will take out their delivery of which there is direct mail and personal mail.

So how is that a deliberate move to stop personal mail?

Secondly at the end of the article you find out that the DO put in a reivison and unsurprisingly there were teething problems. Unsurprisingly a postie is being worked harder.

I am not condoning the implementation of the/a revision and the reasons behind it, but I do consistently get fed-up by journalists who do not bother to get their facts right.

I've only ever had one national newspaper get in touch after I wrote a response to an article so that they could properly understand the RM operation.

I think that what the postie was trying to say to the journalist was that if he tells his dom that he is cutting off then he will be told to stream his mail by taking out the mailsort. Once he has done that, which can take quite a time to sift through the frame, he then realsies that he will still not have enough time to complete. The dom then tells him to take out 2nd class. By the time he is finished streaming he will be delivering the biggest load of sh*te but because it has a TNT or DHL or any other company logo using DSA we must deliver that day.
It is pathetic that mail can be left that is 2nd class which could be an appointment to the hospital but no way must we leave the DSA postcode lottery p*sh.

[Big Daz]

8am straight from delivery frame or 12 pm if im not at work

[andy2007]

8am straight from delivery frame or 12 pm if im not at work

I'm quite lucky really. I get mine, around 10:15 - 10:30. Just as I'm setting off for Work.