Part timer with unprepped frame

[IloveMYredTROLLEY!]

Well as of Monday any unprepped mail, which in theory includes door to door, is to be left behind (having informed section lino) by part-timers. All 22.5 hour rounds are now expected to be "double-prepped" so that we can arrive at 0930 (having been able to do prep overtime starting at 0800 for the whole summer since the re-sign) and start bundling up. The idea behind the move is that the early finishers from other sections are now going to minimise the budget overspend for the depot, which makes a lot of sense when looking at the bigger picture...

The fact it means that we are going to be doing less hours and therefore get less wages is not so good.

What is "double prep" So you are on a 22.5 hour contract, do you mind explaining how your hours are broken down, tying up, travel to first point and actual delivery time.

"Double prep" is where a 30 or 39 hour postie preps their own walk and that of a part-timer. Essentially, this is the Royal Mail management trying to lessen the overall man-hours used indoors, allowing more outdoor work to be done. It will also make some full-time posties actually work for most/all their 8 hours per day, rather than being on their way home daily by 1230!

I know for a fact that 22.5 hours is not going to work on my walk, as my walk averages 4.5 hours a day simply delivering, without taking into account bundling up and meal relief. I estimate that I will still be claiming for ~27 hours, even if I literally do nothing besides bundle up; inform lino of what was not prepped for me and therefore not going with me on delivery; delivery; a minimum 20 minutes meal relief. Out of everyone in my section that has just lost their verbally agreed prep overtime, I'm the most likely to get my hours returned, due to the nature of my walk (see below) and the fact that the "double prepper" for my walk is also the van parcel driver for a lot of our section (so he is going to be between a rock and a hard place, trying to ensure I'm good to go while ensuring bag drops and his own deliveries are ready including his 0900 specials).

My walk starts immediately outside the depot and includes the high street; has the maximum size frame and that includes ~30 extra "hidden" slots (as multiple occupancy houses are not correctly shown on frame, plus some slots are doubled up anyway, all about to change with a re-write of frame in very near future); ~500 residential plus ~125 business drops; typically 6+ specials and 10+ recorded; typically ~35 parcels.

[mclovin]

all i know is its taking me till 10.15am ish to get out of the office then i,ve got me 20 mins break and lapsing to do and full walk by 2.30pm i,ve told managers its a killer to do it by 2.30pm but they not bothered and they don,t want me book o/t as well i don,t go back to D.O but its still a lot to fit in the time.

If you havent had yer revision then last letter is 2pm.

[NewPostieUK]

Just because a duty is part time doesn't meant it should be fully or even partly prepped. Some are meant to be obviously.
A lot of our part time duties are exactly the same as full time, but the full timer has IPS or other things to do.

[RedBagMan]

Same as Mallard - when I come in at 1000 I just have to do packets, redirections and kill-offs - and the very very final missort run - much happier when lino says can you come in 1 hour earlier and prep your own mind (and get paid for it) - all f**k ups are then MY f**k ups

[realitybites]

Just because a duty is part time doesn't meant it should be fully or even partly prepped. Some are meant to be obviously.
A lot of our part time duties are exactly the same as full time, but the full timer has IPS or other things to do.

IPS and what else? Throwing off the walk? the discrepancy in hours is absurd. I have seen part timers on 22.5 hours coming to a totally desolate frame and having to do everything. RM will eventually say that all aspects can be completed in 35 hours {full time minus IPS as on 35 hour contracts).

[realitybites]

Just because a duty is part time doesn't meant it should be fully or even partly prepped. Some are meant to be obviously.
A lot of our part time duties are exactly the same as full time, but the full timer has IPS or other things to do.

IPS and what else? Throwing off the walk? the discrepancy in hours is absurd. I have seen part timers on 22.5 hours coming to a totally desolate frame and having to do everything. RM will eventually say that all aspects can be completed in 35 hours {full time minus IPS as on 35 hour contracts).

Scrub that, they will say a full time duty can be completed in 25 hours the way things are going.

[Sharkeyes]

I need to clarify something for the Part timers amongst you, myself included after 22 years in the job. The statement below is the Official position on this regarding 'Lapsing / absorbing ' of walks.

'NEW WAYS OF COVERING FOR EACH OTHER AND SENSIBLY ABSORBING ABSENCES OR INCREASES IN WORLOAD -"WHERE TIME EXISTS WITHIN NORMAL DUTIES!"

Please look at this in its exact worded format. You will see that if you are on only a 5 hour day, that there is NO CAPACITY to do any Lapsing or Absorbing, as your contract only takes into account the 5 hour duty that your already doing as a normal days work for that duty /walk.
Do Not feel pressured by management to ABSORB any other work from another duty. They know full well that if they continue to pressure and bully you into doing any thing other than that which is the stement above, that they are bullying and harrassing you.
It is true that you can be 'AS DIRECTED' from a manager, but if they want you to do a bit of another walk for nowt, tell them to get their running shoes on and that you will be leaving the last two lines of your own walk in, because you don't or can't work over your time!
'SIMPLES'.
'

[Sharkeyes]

Regarding walks not being thrown in or only the odd bundle etc. advise your rep and tell your manager about the situation. It is the MANAGERS job to see that this work that the full timers are paid to do, is done.
The rep should agree because otherwise it sets the pressident for all full time duties becoming part time.
If amangement continually fail to address the problem, ask your rep about a greivance. It wouldn't surprise me if at some point a manager is taken to task for constructive dismissal if a postie feels he /she is being victimised by having to do all the work for that walk and the managent refuse to rectify the problem highlighted.
All part time walks are duty bound to be thrown in by full time postmen / women. That is what they are paid to do and it protects their full time status.
However I am convinced that some managers use this situation as tool to 'divide and conquer the office by causing dis harmoney amongst staff. There's nothing that pisses me off more than when I am going in to work, full timers are flying out past me and my walk hasn't been thrown in!
DON'T STAND FOR IT, DON'T ACCEPT IT, STAND YOUR GROUND.
Having a manager to help you throw in is not an option as it doesn't make up the fsct that they have f****d up. Any office where this sort of thing goes on daily is an office that is ran by POOR MANAGEMENT. Give them a bit of constructive critisism, or grow a back bone and tell them, "you do it!"

[NewPostieUK]

All part time walks are duty bound to be thrown in by full time postmen

Not true.

[POSTMAN]

I don't get,it if i was on 5hrs a day and i walked in to an empty frame or a part prepped one i'd cream myself!
More time inside less time outside,result!

[meercat]

Any office where this sort of thing goes on daily is an office that is ran by POOR MANAGEMENT. Give them a bit of constructive critisism, or grow a back bone and tell them, "you do it!"

Does this apply to 30hr contracts too? For example on normal days it's like this-

8am 30hr PT'ers get in to an empty frame.
9:30 most FT'ers leave with finish time of 2:15 (I think?) after meal relief.
10:00 I and other 30hr contracts leave with finish time of 1:30 after meal relief.

So FT'ers are getting out with 4hrs 45mins mins delivery time while 30hr PT guys are getting out with 3hrs30 to do equally sized deliveries. That's a shortfall of 1hr15mins which I can't understand. Some FT walks have an extra bit but that takes 20mins still leaving 55mins more time for FT'ers to do the same job. Some days I am still putting in flats when some FT'ers are walking out the door. What can I do about this? Is it normal?

[realitybites]

Is there a definitive answer to this problem or is it a local level problem that is a case of each DO to it's own and the presiding DOM will get away with whatever he can. The big problem is in a lot of DO's the part time presence is very small and as the full timers are supposed to throw off the PT'ers walks the part timers have no where near the same voice as FT'ers. In the end, it is as has already been said, a major failure by management. Maybe a re-write of job descriptions is due.

[clashcityrocker]

The rep should agree because otherwise it sets the precedent for all full time duties becoming part time

Correct

However I am convinced that some managers use this situation as tool to 'divide and conquer the office by causing dis harmoney amongst staff. There's nothing that pisses me off more than when I am going in to work, full timers are flying out past me and my walk hasn't been thrown in!

Correct

Having a manager to help you throw in is not an option as it doesn't make up the fsct that they have f****d up. Any office where this sort of thing goes on daily is an office that is ran by POOR MANAGEMENT

Correct

[IloveMYredTROLLEY!]

While filling in my claim for my prep overtime, just after the managers had gone home at midday, I noticed a laminated A4 sheet titled something to the effect of "Double Prep Standards" which come into effect in our section on Monday, when all part-timers will start at 0930 for the first time since re-sign back at the end of March (instead of typically 0800 Mon-Fri)...
All mail to be in the frame, including backfacing of all parcels
All redirections to be done and placed in correct IPS slots
All unaddressed mail (door to door) to be inserted into frame and marked off on weekly sheet
All missorted mail to be inserted in frame
All RTS/RLB mail to be endorsed and placed in the correct york
Right of way will not be called until every frame has complied with these standards [until now, this has typically been called at 0915-0930]

I will be absolutely staggered of my van driver (who double preps my walk) has time to do all of the above, plus do his early specials run!

[POSTMAN]

Is there a definitive answer to this problem or is it a local level problem that is a case of each DO to it's own and the presiding DOM will get away with whatever he can. The big problem is in a lot of DO's the part time presence is very small and as the full timers are supposed to throw off the PT'ers walks the part timers have no where near the same voice as FT'ers. In the end, it is as has already been said, a major failure by management. Maybe a re-write of job descriptions is due.

Wrong! If they are union members then they have the same rep and voice as the FT lot!