Bullying complaints at Royal Mail

[POSTMAN]

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

ROYAL Mail staff have complained about new management practices, claiming they are being refused bathroom visits and that tea breaks are now timed.

Workers at the Dorcan delivery office in Roland Hill Close, which has 70 employees, say they feel bullied and harassed by a number of new managers who they say are refusing to investigate their complaints, which totalled 35 in one week.

“We feel like prisoners, we can’t even talk to one another because we are being watched and timed,” said one worker who refused to be named.

He said: “I used to love my job, now it’s like a gulag in there.”

Since January 1, workers have complained that the number of managers in the office has doubled, from three to six, and during recent weeks their tea breaks have been timed.

Further complaints include employees having to cover extra rounds when colleagues are off sick, and if they cannot complete them in time they face disciplinary action and even dismissal.

Employees believe tracking devices, intended to improve safety, are being used to spy on their movements and claim they are being refused toilet stops if they would be 15 minutes before or after a scheduled break.

Another employee said: “I feel like I can’t even talk to my colleagues anymore because I am always being watched.

“There has been a manager in the canteen for weeks now writing our break times in a little notepad.

“And if I don’t complete someone else’s shift they are liable to pull me in and say ‘I saw you talking to him for three minutes – you could have better used your time’.

“People are being refused toilet stops if they are 15 minutes before or after break time.

“I feel like I can’t even talk to my colleagues anymore because I am always being watched.”

A worker who has been with Royal Mail for 20 years said: “If traffic is light sometimes you can do your route and the extra load but if you don’t complete because of things outside your control you face getting into trouble.

“It puts massive amounts of stress on us.

“Also in this economic atmosphere people are already scared enough, it’s just not right to put us through more grief.”

Chris Rye, local representative of the Communication Workers’ Union, confirmed he had received 35 bullying and harassment complaints.

He said: “Royal Mail have refused to investigate or allow the National Bullying Helpline, of Devizes Road, in the premises to investigate.

“I cannot comment on individual cases as they are confidential, but I am hoping that Royal Mail will move on this matter as they are supposed to have a zero tolerance on bullying and harassment.”

A Royal Mail Group spokeswoman said: “Royal Mail takes a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment and always investigates such allegations.

“Discussions between the CWU and Royal Mail managers over a number of personnel issues are ongoing. “However, it is nonsense to suggest that breaks are being denied or timed.

“No-one at the Dorcan site has been suspended or disciplined.”

[POSTMAN]

wtf!!

[DGP1]

Sound like what's gong on in my office

[johnsouthwales]

gawd, what a priceless contradiction... “Royal Mail have refused to investigate or allow the National Bullying Helpline". Royal Mail takes a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment and always investigates such allegations.

if royal mail have a zero tolerance, why the refusal to investigate? tut.

the more of these being brought to the attention of the press, the better.. about time the scandalous situations be brought more to public knowledge.. how ridiculous is that?doing your work and then being asked to do covering, then end up sacked cos couldnt finish it.. thats criminal

[andy2007]

They take a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harrasment, so long as it isn't a Manager who is accused!

[norbert]

They take a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harrasment, so long as it isn't a Manager who is accused!

or as long as it's PC - there was too many complaints to the EOC & CRE , a fair proportion of upheld complaints were sleazy , lecherous managers pestering young female staff , you'd think that some of these very instuitionalized & over-promoted idiots in charge had been in a Monastery and/or had very sheltered lives .

To be fair RM has more than it's fair share of otherwise unemployable a***holes and deadheads on the floor too , a mirrored culture

The TUC done a survey stating that RM had the worst record bar the Prison Service & the Sawyer Report was a scathing one too , then there was the Jermaine Lee suicide & the Harlow Tribunal Case and RM had to sack some of their managers as it was too embarrassing .

RM went into it's usual panic mode , the propaganda machine went into overdrive , all purely superficial of course ! , RM were threatened with monitoring and investigation which they didn't want , there was too many complaints so staff had to be "discouraged" from making trouble for RM .

There was a sixth form juvenile " holier than thou policy " with reinvented right - on Royal Mail , also perverse interpretations could be put on matters like targeting reps and activists as RM operate at the legal limit of employment law at the best of times . That's why the B&H policy became corrupt and was deliberately abused . Everything is to a foregone conclusion and purely to impress with that very regimented , top down style , only RM know best and have all the answers .

[norbert]

gawd, what a priceless contradiction... “Royal Mail have refused to investigate or allow the National Bullying Helpline". Royal Mail takes a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment and always investigates such allegations.

if royal mail have a zero tolerance, why the refusal to investigate? tut.

the more of these being brought to the attention of the press, the better.. about time the scandalous situations be brought more to public knowledge.. how ridiculous is that?doing your work and then being asked to do covering, then end up sacked cos couldnt finish it.. thats criminal

Royal Mail don't or have never done irony & contradictions + responsibility , everything is black and white on Planet RM , it's like The Shawbank Redemption - Prison , the world that makes sense

The policy is to keep profits up , minimize costs and keep a lid on bad PR , and soften up , knock the stuffing out of people for privatization , the culture change that Senior Management want , backward firm stuck in a time warp !

[johnsouthwales]

workers have zero tolerance too when it comes down to irresponsibility thrown at them by rm.. if there wasn't a problem, there wouldn't be any need for a complaint..

when people get threatened the sack for after doing their own shift and being asked to work cover, and if that cover doesn't get finsihed, they're out????? may as well say no to covering and keep on the safe side.... either that or evaluate the covering work before accepting.

it like what i was saying in another post, every second counts.. as for toilet break and the alleged being timed scenario, that is just throwing fuel onto the fire. if you gotta go, you gotta go. end of.

if there was no harrassment or bullying, how come people are being 'enticed' to use their own cars? push a workforce to the limits and you'd end up having no workforce left.. is there such an employment law that prohibits talking? execpt health and safety in places like operating theatres where it wouldn't be such a good idea to jabber away.. i do know that exessive noise does intefere when i'm concentrating.. maybe some people just simply get wound up by other people talking because they concentrate too much.. in other words, you can have two people in the same room, one does not compain about the noise and the other will.. that could boil down to personalities.

i remember once in 1989, the superviser hated the radio on, even though he was not in the same room. he would have fits, and even smashed it up because he didn't like people with smiley faces... haha, we just bought a new one lol.

he even tried to get personal stereos banned in the mid 90s.

some strange people around... actually background music is beneficial and has proved to be beneficial. if a radio is too loud, just smply turn it down a little (then people be saying they cant hear it at the back lol..

people are people, not robots.. then again, if a robot was used as an operative, management would have a go at it lol

[not me]

Sound like what's gong on in my office

i expect this in ours
Park n loop is coming in and its already been stated if you cant manage the new duties they will start timing your performance
just today they were trying to force people to get conversion trained on their own time!

[brothermagrew]

With regards to brother norbet's posting and with reference to in particular the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) they found in 2003 the following and which we should not easily forget:


The EOC launched its investigation in January 2003 after deciding there were grounds to believe that RMG plc had failed to take sufficient steps at national, regional, or local level, to prevent significant sexual harassment of its female employees over a sustained period of time in the Royal Mail business unit.
That decision was reached after the Commission found that during the period between January 1999 and July 2002:

Forty-eight claims of sex discrimination against the business were taken in Employment Tribunals.
There were 140 internal formal complaints of sexual harassment made by female postal workers. Of these, 130 internal investigations had been completed and 65% of the complaints were upheld. Sixty of the complaints involved allegations against a male manager.
22 female Royal Mail employees contacted the EOC with complaints about harassment during that period, many of which included an allegation that management had failed to investigate complaints of sexual harassment promptly, fairly or at all.
There around 190,000 people working in Royal Mail, the vast majority of whom are frontline postal workers. 15% of Royal Mail's employees are female.


It has to be acknowledged that since 2003 the business has instigated further measures to tackle bullying and harassment in all forms:

Royal Mail Group (RMG) employs over 190,000 people in the UK – that’s almost one per cent of the entire working population. Due to its size, tackling the matter of bullying and harassment, including a number of high profile cases, was never going to be an easy task.

Added to this, in January 2003, the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) considered a formal investigation into the high number of sexual harassment complaints filed by women at Royal Mail. In August 2003, both parties agreed a three-year action plan to deal with sexual harassment within the organisation.
While the EOC helped to provide focus RMG recognised that it could not turn round the business without addressing the B&H issue. So Royal Mail Group overhauled its approach to bullying & harassment and introduced a new policy which comprised:

A 12-step investigation process – this sets out rights and responsibilities of all parties, emphasises RMG’s commitment to dealing with B&H et.
An online database to track case progress – this ensures ‘just in time’ information is always available.
Diversity training for all 190,000 employees.
A new 24-hour confidential telephone helpline to advise employees who feel they are being bullied.
A Diversity & Inclusion awards scheme introduced by Chairman, Allan Leighton – to recognise the fantastic achievements of our people.
A Listeners programme – offering colleague to colleague support. These people act as a sign post to the support available to employees.
Award winning ‘With Friends Like These’ video to tackle banter in the workplace. At RMG we know that ‘banter’ is the No1 issue causing unhappiness to our people.
Launch of Dignity & Respect at Work (DRAW) groups where managers, employees and Union representatives get together to identify local issues and improvement action.
Web-based training programme for managers.
Detailed B&H questions as part of our annual employee opinion survey to measure confidence and progress in the B&H process. This information is used to report back to employees and the Board.
A team of independent harassment investigators who handle serious / complex cases.
Specially trained locally based diversity managers to support ‘hot spots’.
Ongoing support for National Ban Bullying at Work Day including ‘walk the talk’ site visits – these present a great opportunity for managers and staff to speak about the issue.
Ongoing communications campaign using a range of media including posters, TV Screens, team discussion, employee newspaper and intranet to feature real-life stories and outcomes.
Since the new approaches were implemented, the number of employees experiencing bullying and harassment has fallen significantly. Overall confidence has increased and there is an increasing recognition that bullying and harassment is not tolerated at RMG.


Whilst the Board of Royal Mail or those who speak on their behalf maintain that the business has a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment, this does not appear to be the case, with the number of complaints appearing on this forum more regularly, and I do not think that their lower level managers have grasped the fact that staff will not and should not tolerate any forms whatsoever of bullying and harassment.

The findings of the
biggest British bullying study suggest
the bullying problem is significantly
worse than elsewhere in Europe.

Based on a survey of 5,300 public,
private and voluntary sector employees,
the results suggest workplace
bullying contributes to the loss of 18
million working days every year. And
victims of workplace bullying take an
average seven extra days off each year
than those who are not bullied.

The TUC survey found that in most
cases (75 per cent) a manager was
identified as the bully. Victims of bullying
were more likely to experience
autocratic and divisive styles of management
than those who hadn't
experienced bullying at work.

A July 1999 Institute of Management
(IOM) report suggested bullying
was part of the new management
credo. It concluded that new "leaner"
business practices are a breeding
ground for "corporate bullying on a
large scale." (Hazards 67).

IOM added that people are expected
to "work longer hours with fewer
resources, put into head-to-head
competition with colleagues and
treated unsympathetically if they flag
under the strain. This attitude starts at
the top and filters down through an
entire organisation spawning a whole
brood of macho style managers in its
wake."

The TUC research also found that
long hours and job insecurity has
helped to fuel the epidemic of workplace
bullying. TUC study author
Professor Cary Cooper of UMIST
linked the higher UK incidence compared
to other European countries to
the growth of long hours - we work the
longest hours in Europe - job insecurity
and the effects of "downsizing" on
workloads.

The law:
In July 1999 UK organisation ACAS
issued workplace bullying guidance.
The guidance for employees notes
safety, discrimination, disability and
stalking laws may all apply (Hazards
67).

It adds: "Employers are usually liable
in law for the acts of their workers
and this includes bullying or harassing
behaviour."
General duties under the Health
and Safety at Work Act 1974 require
employers to protect the health, safety
and welfare of their employees, with
these duties explained further in safety
regulations including the Management
of Health and Safety at Work
Regulations 1999.

Where employers have failed to
take the required care of their staff,
workers can claim compensation.
In 1996, UNISON won a major bullying
victory in the courts, securing
£66,000 in an out-of-court settlement
for social worker Janet Ballantyne who
suffered anxiety, depression and panic
attacks caused by a bullying manager.
In March 2000, a former army private
was awarded £745,000 at the
High Court after an attack by a bullying
corporal lead to mental collapse.

[johnsouthwales]

why don't you email your concerns to your local MP as well?

[andy2007]

why don't you email your concerns to your local MP as well?

Better still, post them.

[johnsouthwales]

thats true..

[johnsouthwales]

i've sent emails to mp's, 300 so far since yesterday..i had no choice but to email, as sending letters would have cost me over hundred pounds by the time i envelope them, stamps and printouts.

i've had a handful of replies today ranging from -

"does not have time to take up cases from non constituents" ,

Thank you for letting me know.

It's impossible to deal fully with all the complains that come in. That is why this matter is primarily for your own MPs.

Thanks; I appreciate you wishing to bring to everyone's attention. However only your MP is able to take up your concerns for you and send you the response they receive.

[madelin4]

May as well talk to the wall!!!!!Especially if the B&H is against a Manager!!!They will do anything to protect each other and lie lie lie! Anything they do wrong just gets brushed under the carpet in the hope it will go away!