Thoughts on leaving RM

[Puppetmaster]

Ive worked for RM for 6 years now ,used to really enjoy it .This last year ,I am so fed up its untrue,We have a new Dom every year at least,some are ok and Some are typical RM managers 110%
We are due for a new DOM again and a new one is on his way our present Dom is ok,so guess the new one will be a different model .
Also van sharing -2 to a van is coming in shortly although the CWU will oppose it like pegus ,things will be very bad ,when Pegusus happend last year RM managers tried alsorts of things on and we came very close to striking .
And proably the no1 reason is volume of mail and trying to get done on time.
I do not care what any one claims about mail volumes falling,I have seen a real rise in volume from letters to A4 FLATS especialy catalogues and of course packets,now most days we
have 2 sacks of packets as well.A large increase in recordeds and Specials,althogh I heard officialy ,you should only have a max of 8 items you have to knock on the door 4.

Have also noticed the frequency that you are getting mail for nearly every house like DFS etc is increaseing greatly-no doubt

The preassure to complete on time with this volume is crazy, I am finding when I FINNISHED I am totaly knackered,and as the week goes on myback and legs ache so much,SUNDAY
ITS FINE,Monday its ok then tues its slight and by Thursday feeling it.I do not want to go on like this and seeing the amount of guys in my office with serious back /legg problems
I do not want to carry on like this.

So have been looking around and very shocked what have seen
The job center all minimum wage ,how can you pay a mortgage on that ?
Googled -owner van drivers wanted and was surprised and what came back.
looks like all over the country ,proably Dhl or similar is looking for Owner drivers for parcel delivery work -45 + drops a day -does not sound too bad
heres the catch They want large vans no older than 4 years ,and Earnings are £400a week say,now you have to take fuel out of that say minium £100 a week courier insurance,tax etc.where = tear on van and cost of van does not leave much.
WHAT IS THE ANSWER--IS THEIR A ANSWER-IS THE TRUTH OUT THEIR?

[Lounge Lizard]

Owner drivers is already in at Parcel Farce so not long before the reat of Royal Mail too, so not much choice really.

[madelin4]

Hi Puppetmaster

I know how you feel. I had been suffering ongoing knee and foot problems until they just decided that they could no longer fund my re-hab time (due to operational/financial reasons that they just decided to pay me off!! Yea, so not much hope! Now, i reckon it will be the best thing iv ever done is get out of there, as you say the jobs getting very demanding on the old body and is it worth the long term and future health problems this is going to entail? answer is no!

I myself have seen the job market thing but i have plans to run my own business and so far it looks very hopeful. You will need to have some sort of plan on what else you can do.

It will all work out in the end, its all about taking risks big ones and all!! If one remains positive then only good things should come.

Be interesting to hear what others have to say on this one. But its as simple as this, Once our bodies start going down because of what it is doing day in and day out, royal mail just wanna chuck us out the door and replace us with a fit 20 y/o who races round like a mad man then in later life will pay for it!!

Good luck with what you decide friend.

[Yahoorsur]

The preassure to complete on time with this volume is crazy, I am finding when I FINNISHED I am totaly knackered,and as the week goes on myback and legs ache so much,SUNDAY
ITS FINE,Monday its ok then tues its slight and by Thursday feeling it.I do not want to go on like this and seeing the amount of guys in my office with serious back /legg problems
I do not want to carry on like this.


Bloody hell that sounds just like myself moaning to Mrs Y,I totally know where you are coming from and I symathise with you,cos after finishing yesterday even after a bath I was leg and footsore
we go into exec action on the 20th April,but heres one postie who will be starting on time ,taking meal relief,not using my car and weighing all my bags.........................oops did I mention finishing on my time as well.I honestly cant wait to have 'discussions' with the managers on what to leave

[madelin4]

I honestly cant wait to have 'discussions' with the managers on what to leave

They will do the usual, watch your every move, who you talk to, how long you spend in loo, watch you at your frame, even possibly move your frame, they done this to me!!!! Then they will say your not going fast enough, also come out and "Patrol" !!!! Need i go on?

[hj4k]

don't be so sure! i've been esking for 2yrs for a DOM to come out and test me on delivery but the b****rds won't do it cos they know my walk is unfeasible. I just leave a quarter of it every day and they get sone new start to take it out. they all come in early and run round so they still finish before their time!!!!!! unbelievably stupid!!!!

[fmrPOSTIE]

By all means leave Royal Mail when the economy recovers but i woldn't leave at the moment. Your getting *fairly* good salary & benefits...best thing that ever happened was me leaving RM now earning alot more than f/t's and plus RM gives you no skills whatsoever for the outside World. You need to realise this before its too late lol.

[stokes11eg]

By all means leave Royal Mail when the economy recovers but i woldn't leave at the moment. Your getting *fairly* good salary & benefits...best thing that ever happened was me leaving RM now earning alot more than f/t's and plus RM gives you no skills whatsoever for the outside World. You need to realise this before its too late lol.

Many people come to R/M with previously accquired skills ---and I still say Ex posties Have a lot to offer-if your not killed off first.

[Stormproof]

I would love to do a course on probate research but by the time I get home from work and done the housework/cooking etc I'd be too knackered to do anything else.

[smok3y666]

Owner drivers is already in at Parcel Farce so not long before the reat of Royal Mail too, so not much choice really.

I work for PF as a driver, only been doing it for around 6 months and am completely pissed off already. Even the owner drivers are pissed off at the managers. In fact the only ones not pissed off are the brown noses that are looked after and get paid til 5 every day due to SA but only work til 4. Over the past 6 months though I have noticed that when a route is lost due to someone leaving/getting sacked or illness it has been taken up by an owner driver. 45 drops a day is easy. I do approx 60 and still manage it okay. Some drivers however do 80-90 which can be quite difficult.

[k979aaa]

Owner drivers is already in at Parcel Farce so not long before the reat of Royal Mail too, so not much choice really.

I work for PF as a driver, only been doing it for around 6 months and am completely pissed off already. Even the owner drivers are pissed off at the managers. In fact the only ones not pissed off are the brown noses that are looked after and get paid til 5 every day due to SA but only work til 4. Over the past 6 months though I have noticed that when a route is lost due to someone leaving/getting sacked or illness it has been taken up by an owner driver. 45 drops a day is easy. I do approx 60 and still manage it okay. Some drivers however do 80-90 which can be quite difficult.

They do the samething in royalmail try too get rid of full time and get partime in!.

[smokerjim]

Owner drivers is already in at Parcel Farce so not long before the reat of Royal Mail too, so not much choice really.

I work for PF as a driver, only been doing it for around 6 months and am completely pissed off already. Even the owner drivers are pissed off at the managers. In fact the only ones not pissed off are the brown noses that are looked after and get paid til 5 every day due to SA but only work til 4. Over the past 6 months though I have noticed that when a route is lost due to someone leaving/getting sacked or illness it has been taken up by an owner driver. 45 drops a day is easy. I do approx 60 and still manage it okay. Some drivers however do 80-90 which can be quite difficult.

I done 4 months at City Link ( invisible "h" in "City" ) from Oct to Feb, and I was regularly taking out 100+ parcels a day ( usually 130+ in December ) & I only got a regular route in December - I flogged my guts out that entire time ( 12hrs a day, + 4-5 OT every night ), and one time I didn't lock my van ( and about 30 odd packets nicked ) I got canned. Six months dole later RM hired me - the job has got worse, and the bullsh*t more prevelant in the last 3 years, but if you cut off everyday, at least you won't get sacked for it ( that happened to one or two I worked with ).

[fmrPOSTIE]

smokerjim; I take it RM dont know that you got sacked for not locking your van? what about references......

[Phantom]

As an office we have a good CUT OFF culture which is helping ease the pressure on basically working till you drop. Royal Mail are not interested in your welfare and would allow you to work and work and work.

Most staff are they're own worst enemy simply by not doing the job correctly and sadly there is nothing that can be done about this, people either see sense or they don't BUT it will cost jobs in the end as RM managers see opportunities to make cuts to feed their own bonuses.

Example of this is on tuesday we have part timers starting at 9am but 99% are in the office between 7:30 and 8am - this has been deliberately done to get 1-1.30hrs free work out of them which they are gladly giving RM and the answer is WHY?

[norbert]

As an office we have a good CUT OFF culture which is helping ease the pressure on basically working till you drop. Royal Mail are not interested in your welfare and would allow you to work and work and work.

Most staff are they're own worst enemy simply by not doing the job correctly and sadly there is nothing that can be done about this, people either see sense or they don't BUT it will cost jobs in the end as RM managers see opportunities to make cuts to feed their own bonuses.

Example of this is on tuesday we have part timers starting at 9am but 99% are in the office between 7:30 and 8am - this has been deliberately done to get 1-1.30hrs free work out of them which they are gladly giving RM and the answer is WHY?

That " culture " of what is effectively enforced overtime , often unpaid AFAIK is called " Resources Management " , some insane University Professor thought of it in the mid 90's , it's a " intellectual " version of macho management , in a nutshell you show your loyalty to RM by working O/T as they've already cut to the bone or even pared into the bone & you report everything that nasty union is plotting , of course RM is never underhand ! .

The reps of course , are always first out of the door by fair means or foul .

Add that to a sales culture of bonuses and you've got a very nasty cocktail breeding confrontational rambo managers . Having Senior / Executive Managers from a Sales Background is a New Labour " Blue Sky " idea called " Manageralisim , the idea is that if you're a " good " manager you can manage any discipline that you've had no previous experience of .

There's been a few high profile media cases where it's backfired with Councils , Baby P etc .

RM's senior managers are already on borrowed time , they've been found out as empire builders of the worst kind , their Middle Management doing their bidding and barking orders and issuing dicktats will be next and their parasitical stooges and clones that feed them will follow as they've outlived their usefulness - Their time will come as Postman says - seen it all before .