Collections Revision Process and guidelines

[fishtank]

To: All Branches with POSTAL Members
CWU Divisional Representatives
CWU Area Delivery, Distribution and Processing Representatives
Dear Colleagues,
Collections Revision Process and Collection Revision Guidelines v2.5

It has been brought to the attention of the Outdoor Department that in various locations around the country management are encouraging our local representatives to engage in discussions to remove collection points from existing routes and duties, outside of the nationally agreed Collections Revisions Process and Guidelines. For ease of reference 2 key paragraphs from the agreed revision guidelines v2.5 are produced below.

The approach focuses on the introduction of volume based guidelines, mail centre capacity and geographical location of collection points to determine collection point visit provision, the extended use of Georoute v2008 optimisation software to plan collection routes and the introduction of standard hub mail presentation processes. This new approach to collections also adopts all the principles, key statements and spirit and intent contained in the Business Transformation 2010 and Beyond Agreement.

In line with the nationally agreed approach to revision activity the 6-phase process supported by this Guide can be adapted to perform any type and scale of Collection Revision, and where appropriate should be used in conjunction with the Collection Routing Tool (Georoute for Collections) system to maximise efficiency and the Collections Best Practice Toolkit.
The type of phraseology being used in these circumstances is 'Quick Wins' and 'Table-top' solutions, particularly with regard to boxes with less than 50 items.

Whilst the agreed revision guidelines allow for different types of revision activity it is important that all data is accurate and maintained at all times to allow this type of approach to take place with any confidence. Simply asking CWU reps to agree to a 'Quick Win' due to the removal of collection points with less than 50 items from routes and duties in the absence of reliable data should not even be considered. The relevant extract from the agreed guidelines is reproduced below.

There are several different types of revision activity that take place in collections. These can range from minor route alterations to correspond with customer needs through to full-scale office revisions in response to major operational problems or changes. Some revisions may last only a couple of weeks while others may take up to 3 Months to complete and this will depend upon a number of factors including whether the hub is Small, Medium or Large, when it last had a revision, the condition of base data, the staffing profile, customer base etc and this is why it is important to maintain accurate data.

Equally the shaded box below will also need to be taken into consideration when faced with such requests. It is also important to remember that it is not simply the volume of items that need to be considered, mail centre capacity and geographical location are also of equal importance.

Collection Point Clearances - Postboxes and POL Outlets
The number and frequency of clearances that should be provided to Postboxes and POL outlets will be determined and agreed locally based on mail volumes and mail centre capacity and geographical location of collection points. Unwarranted Postbox relief collections should be planned for removal based upon volume in line with the following guidelines from the Collection Point Clearance Guide and in conjunction with the statement above:

Less than 100 items a day - generally no relief visit should be planned unless the Postbox is associated with a POL outlet where the reliefs should be geared to any POL relief clearance.

100 - 199 items a day - generally a single relief collection should be planned at the optimum time to maximise mail flow and efficiency.

Over 200 items a day - in these circumstances there may be the case for an extra relief in line with Postbox capacity and local mail flow needs. Postboxes with over 400 items may justify a third relief although ordinarily these will be the exception.

Specifically on a Monday, based on local needs, it is advised that specific Monday only reliefs are considered to target known heavier boxes, typically considering those with average day volumes in the 50-99 items range.

The purpose of this LTB is to remind Branches that the documents referred to above are the only ones that hold the field with regard to Collections revisions. Any approaches made outside of this are not agreed with the CWU and should be the subject of a disagreement, escalated to a point of principle if necessary through the IR Framework.

It is important that CWU representatives stay in line with the agreed process and guidelines at all times.

Any enquiries to Bob Gibson's Office, quoting reference 532

Email address: hnutley@cwu.org

Yours sincerely


Bob Gibson

CWU Assistant Secretary

[hans solo]

well do something about it bob how about an agreement maybe with no plan b

[silly suffolk]

be handy if local reps got the release time to have some input on this. managers doing what they want bob

[tojobevred]

about time we got shut of bob exactly wot as he done for us
as a del postman he has done nowt
no collections should be given up without a fight
there is ways around losing collections but bob as been quiet why ?
I THINK IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE

[tojobevred]

we are losing enough money as it is
aye bob look at the way fwd agreement local earnings should be mainted
therefore collections should be a closed shop unless we get full time jobs out of it
as the 70/30 is open to one way
royal mails way