ANGARD STORIES :UPDATES

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Bradford Royal Mail workers angry at wage mix-up

http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/n ... ge_mix_up/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Casual Christmas staff taken on to cope with the festive postal rush in Bradford have complained of incomplete wage packets, with some saying they have not been paid for three weeks.

Student Umar Mirza said he had not received a penny after working night shifts for three weeks at the Royal Mail Bradford North depot.

“We haven’t been getting paid,” he said. “They have been saying we’ll get paid this day, that day, for the last three weeks.”

He said he believed most of the 40 temporary workers with whom he was working night shifts had suffered problems with their pay.

Many of the staff, he said, were employed by Angard Staffing, Royal Mail’s in-house recruitment agency, but calls to Angard were met with a recorded message.

Another casual worker, Hassan Saeed, 18, said he had been paid £4.50 per hour for the work he had done, but his wage according to his contract was £6.58.

“We’ve been working three-and-a-half weeks. Most people have not been paid and some have not been paid the correct amount,” he said.

Royal Mail spokesman Heulyn Gwyn Davies said that, on Tuesday, the company had paid temporary workers who were “regrettably not paid on time or by the correct amount last week.”

He said: “Royal Mail apologises for any difficulties caused to a minority of our temporary workers. Our temporary Christmas staff are very important to us.

“The vast majority of our temporary Christmas workers were paid on time last week.”

[TrueBlueTerrier]

CHELMSFORD

Payroll blunder leaves postal workers angry and unpaid

http://www.maldonandburnhamstandard.co. ... nd_unpaid/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

ANGRY temporary postal staff refused to work after a payroll hitch left many out of pocket in the run up to Christmas.

Pay issues at the Royal Mail sorting office, in Chelmsford, came to a head at the weekend when its Christmas “casuals” threatened to walk out on Saturday, December 17 if they did not receive immediate cash payments.

It is not known how many people are affected but some have not been paid for three weeks and bank details were allegedly lost.

Royal Mail takes on thousands of temporary staff over the festive period to assist full time employees with the large amount of post and parcels that need to reach loved ones in time for Christmas.

They are recruited by Angard Staffing on behalf of Royal Mail but it has been claimed workers’ numerous attempts to contact the company have been unsuccessful.

Married mum-of-two Claudia Hart, 35, of Inchbonnie Road, South Woodham Ferrers, started working at the depot two weeks ago.

She said: “It’s an expensive time of year and we didn’t want to use credit cards. We were relying on that money to get Christmas presents for the kids but we couldn’t get what they wanted.

“I wasn’t really angry, more upset because it effected my family, you can’t tell the kids they have to wait until January for their presents.”

Mrs Hart said staff have been told the problem has been resolved and they will be paid on Friday, December 23.

“They have broken promises so many times but I’m hoping it happens,”she added.

“It’s uncomfortable and uncertain and I think that by Thursday people will be getting anxious about it, it’s a mess really.”

Valerie Antoine, Royal Mail spokeswoman, said: “Difficulties with the payroll system meant some temporary workers regrettably were not paid on time or by the correct amount last week.

“We apologise for this as our temporary Christmas staff are very important to us. Firm action is being taken to resolve outstanding pay issues.”

[TrueBlueTerrier]

POOLE

Mail staff's anger at unpaid wages

A NUMBER of temporary employees, working in Poole to ensure the Christmas mail arrives in time, have not been paid.

Scores of extra staff were drafted into the Royal Mail sorting offices at Nuffield Industrial Estate in a bid to ensure the festive post runs smoothly.

However, many have complained about lack of wages – or pay packets which are hundreds of pound light.

One 19-year-old university student from Poole, who has been working through the night in a bid to finance his studies, was paid just one penny for a week’s work.

His angry mum, Jane Lambeth, told the Daily Echo: “This is ridiculous.

“He is not out there drinking or acting up like some other teenagers, he is working hard to pay his way.”

Another temporary worker said: “With one week to go before Christmas people are depending on their wages, there are people who cannot feed their families because of this.”

A 19-year-old, who was expecting to earn £250 a week, has received just 60 per cent and a friend will lose his lodgings if he cannot pay the rent by the end of the week.

“We finish in a week’s time,” she said. “Are we actually going to get the rest of our pay?”

The Royal Mail have admitted problems with the payroll system have meant some workers have not been paid correctly.

Workers were taken on earlier this year by the Royal Mail’s staffing arm Angard Staffing.

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “We apologise for this as our temporary Christmas staff are very important to us.

“Firm action is being taken to resolve outstanding pay issues.

“The vast majority of our Christmas temporary recruits have been paid as usual into their bank accounts. Where this was not possible, we have made huge efforts to put in place additional payment channels.

“This involves staff receiving either a cash payment or a voucher which can then be redeemed for the relevant amount of cash at any Post Office branch.”

[POSTMAN]

Royal Mail reports delivery of all temp salaries, and apologises
http://www.recruiter.co.uk/royal-mail-r ... 88.article" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Following problems with the payment of Christmas temporary staff, the Royal Mail has told Recruiter that all workers have now been paid the full amount they are owed.

A statement issued to Recruiter from the Royal Mail says: “The small minority of our temporary workers who were regrettably not paid on time or by the correct amount last week were paid yesterday [Tuesday, 20 December].”

As reported by recruiter.co.uk earlier this week, the Royal Mail was taking emergency steps to ensure all workers were paid, following alleged walkouts - reports of which were denied by the Royal Mail - the previous week.

The statement continues: “The vast majority of our temporary Christmas workers were paid on time last week. Royal Mail apologises for any difficulties caused to the minority who did not receive their pay last week.”

Speaking to Recruiter this morning, a Royal Mail spokesperson adds that problems have only been experienced by the minority of the 18,000 Royal Mail Christmas workers, although admitted that “it doesn’t make it any better”.

A spokesperson from Reed, which provides a number of recruitment services to outsourced Royal Mail recruitment organisation Angard, tells Recruiter: “This is the largest recruitment campaign of its kind anywhere in the country.

“There have been payroll queries involving a small proportion of the overall Christmas temporary workforce and to ensure that these are quickly resolved, Reed has a dedicated helpdesk for Royal Mail managers and employees to log any queries raised at the site.

“We have had weekend teams in place to ensure that any payroll queries are addressed quickly and efficiently.”

Angard’s handling of Royal Mail has been the subject of controversy since September, when the Communication Workers Union suggested that the agency had been set up to “get around” the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR).

[POSTMAN]

Royal Mail staff remain unpaid despite assurances

http://www.recruiter.co.uk/royal-mail-s ... 99.article" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Recruiter has learnt that some Royal Mail Christmas staff remain unpaid, even after the organisation released a statement yesterday saying that everyone had received full pay.

A Royal Mail worker from Bath, who preferred not to be named, told Recruiter that as of yesterday afternoon, he had not received any payment or vouchers from Royal Mail or Angard, saying that he has tried to contact Angard on several occasions.

An Angard worker in the north west of England told Recruiter this morning that no one on his shift had been paid properly.

An unemployed charted accountant working as a Christmas temporary staff in the South West tells Recruiter: “I have the knowledge to review and assess cases enough to know that some colleagues remain underpaid.”

A statement issued to Recruiter on Wednesday, 21 December said: “”The small minority of our temporary workers who were regrettably not paid on time or by the correct amount last week were paid yesterday [Tuesday, 20 December].”

A spokesperson from Reed, which provides a number of recruitment services to outsourced Royal Mail recruitment organisation Angard, tells Recruiter: “We can confirm that all queries we are aware of have now been resolved, with vouchers being issued to ensure that workers receive their pay as quickly as possible.”

Reed provided the email address angardpayroll.queries@reedglobal.com for any jobseekers with pay queries.

Acas, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service, issued the following advice: “If an employee or worker is not getting their agreed pay they should in the first instance write to the employer, copying in relevant HR contacts where this is appropriate (if contact has been difficult then recorded delivery may be worth considering).

“They should state the situation, their request for payment and indicate how much payment they believe they are owed where possible.

“If the employer does not respond within a reasonable amount of time then one option available may be to pursue the non payment of wages at an Employment Tribunal.

“However, there may be other options available depending on the situation so it’s often worth contacting the Acas Helpline for impartial advice on 08457 47 47 47 beforehand.”

[POSTMAN]

Temporary Southend postal staff didn't get paid

http://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/9435370 ... l_workers/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

POSTAL staff taken on to deal with the Christmas rush at a Southend sorting office were left without pay.

Workers were hired by a recruitment company on behalf of Royal Mail, but several have been left waiting for their money.

Gary Schofield, 43, of Southchurch Avenue, Southend, walked out after he was paid just £55.55 for working a 10pm to 6am night shift between December 4 and December 16.

He was one of 35 workers, taken on for Christmas by Angard Staffing Solutions, who have experienced the payment problems.

Mr Schofield took on the temporary job to supplement his work as a builder and he was hoping the extra money would help with presents for his wife, Emma, and two-year-old son, Billy.

He said: “I was looking at changing what I do for a living and I was hoping something might kick on from this job.

“Luckily, my wife works, but there are some who take that sort of work on to have a better Christmas and they have been paid virtually nothing for what they have done.

“Some of us got a token payment after complaining, but most have got nothing.”

Mr Schofield believes he is due about £270 for the hours he has worked.

He added: “Some people have just carried on in the hope of being paid, but I wouldn’t. If you work, you should be paid for it. The whole thing has been a farce.”

The problems have been experienced by hundreds of workers across the country, including many in Chelmsford.

Angard, part of Royal Mail, manages the company’s various temporary staff needs. This operation has been outsourced to Reed Specialist Recruitment.

No one at Angard was available to comment and a spokesman for Reed declined to respond.

Royal Mail insists the problems have now been rectified and staff issued with payment vouchers, which they can cash in at post offices. Spokesman Nick Martens said: “The small minority of temporary workers who were not paid on time or by the correct amount last week were paid on Tuesday.

“The vast majority of our temporary Christmas workers were paid on time last week.

“Royal Mail apologises for any difficulties caused to the minority who did not receive their pay last week. We have taken action in every single case we are aware of.”

[POSTMAN]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-16320623" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Temporary postal staff walk out in row over pay

Temporary postal workers at a Mallusk sorting office have been told wages cannot be guaranteed by Christmas, according to staff.

Catherine Hardy from Glengormley started work on 30 November.

She said she and two other workers walked out on Tuesday after a senior manager claimed that payment before Christmas was uncertain.

In a statement, Royal Mail said the vast majority of temporary workers had been paid on time.

"The small minority of our temporary workers who were regrettably not paid on time or by the correct amount have now been paid," it said.

Ms Hardy said staff were due to get paid weekly and the pay delay has affected a significant number of staff.

"Myself, along with at least 100 other temporary employees found that after several weeks of working, no-one was receiving payments," she said.

"We just weren't getting paid for the work. This is a sham."

The temporary employment contracts are handled through Angard Staffing, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Royal Mail.

Royal Mail has apologised for any difficulties caused to the minority who did not receive their pay on time.

"We have taken action in every single case that we are aware of to ensure a payment has been made," it said.

"In some cases, we have done this by issuing a voucher which can be cashed at any Post Office branch."

Ms Hardy said that Royal Mail's management in Mallusk did issue a barcode to those who had received no payment which could be cashed at the post office.

She claimed this was for £350, a sum much lower than what she was owed.

Temporary postal workers across the UK have been experiencing similar problems over pay.

[POSTMAN]

Royal Mail casual staff stage second protest at Birmingham sorting office

Read More http://www.birminghammail.net/news/top- ... z1hS6GPd8Q" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

CHRISTMAS staff at the Royal Mail in Birmingham have held a second protest over not being paid in just 48 hours.

Dozens of temporary workers staged a two-hour sit-in at the canteen at the city’s main sorting office in Newtown when they did not get their wages.

They were rewarded with £350 vouchers just hours later.

The Royal Mail, who blamed the mix-up on problems with the agency payroll system, later apologised to staff. Earlier this week, up to 35 workers led an hour-long wildcat strike at the centre when their weekly wages went unpaid.

Agency worker Leonie Abbott, 21, from Moseley, said: “I got there at 2pm to start my shift and said I was refusing to work because we hadn’t been paid.

“Around 40 or 50 of us had a sit-in in the canteen for a couple of hours.

“After we went back to work, we were all given £350 vouchers.

“They have even overpaid some people who have not earned that much.

“Apparently, there have been problems with the agency payroll for quite some time. The managers were not very happy with us at all and were begging us to get back to work.

“I have calculated that I have worked 62.5 hours at just over £6 an hour, so I have been underpaid. The whole thing is a mess.”

Earlier this week agency worker Royston Allcock said some Christmas casuals had not been paid for up to three weeks.

Royal Mail spokesman Heulyn Davies said: “The small minority of our temporary workers who were regrettably not paid on time or by the correct amount last week were paid on Tuesday.

“The vast majority of our temporary Christmas workers were paid on time last week. Royal Mail apologises for any difficulties caused to the minority who did not receive their pay last week.

“We have taken action in every single case that we are aware of to ensure a payment is being made.

“We are issuing a voucher which can be cashed at any Post Office branch. Our Christmas workers are very important to us.”

[dolphindawn]

Angard still not paid staff at Bristol properly workers turned up on night shift tonight and got sent away after royal mail asked them to turn up then got told if worked for angard not to come back again even thought asked by royal mail to work till the 6 of jan not alot of happy bunnies

[radar360]

Warrington staff not paid with some staff not recieving anything. A RM manager walks around with a letter asking temps to share as he only had one copy. Two telephone numbers on bottom of sheet with an automated response email address to post pay queries too. Utter shambles. Then, even with badges stating 24th of December being end of contract dates, RM staff told all temp staff that they were not required for Christmas Eve.

After speaking to a completely brainwashed angard head office employee about the state of my pay were he told me that I had been paid, he told me that Payroll was working throughout the Christmas period to rectify this as they had 18,00 employees. I wasn't offered any information about the payroll office, so I did some digging.

Angard Payroll office : 27a High Street, Andover, Hants, SP10 1LJ 01264339428.
angardpayroll.queries@reedglobal.com.

I tried the elephone number and it doesn't seem to be working as there is only a long buzzing noise on the line - no dial tone. Good luck to anyone else who can get into contact with them.

[catherine hardy]

I was working at Royal Mail Mallusk N I , on Wednesday 21st Iwas asked to speak on behalf of about 15 of us temp Angard workers to upper management, he approached us with attitude, I politely requested some form of assurance we would be paid as Christmas was the weekend, He wouldnt guarantee it, then said they were waiting till Friday to see what Angard were doing, he said they might do the barcode voucher thing again , I asked as it was Christmas on Sunday could he guarantee this as we were working to pay for Christmas etc; He would'nt and then directed at me personally that If I didnt like the terms to give him my security pass and hi vis and thanks, seriously, what the heck was I supposed to do, he humiliated me in front of the other managers and my temp colleagues so I had to give the badge to him and walk out. I am gutted as really enjoyed the work and the whole experience has been a nightmare. I worked my backside off for Royal Mail / Angard and only on the Friday I received a payment , the first into my bank account for £171 today I got a payslip, no dates of when it was for etc; I have asked for a copy of a contract which I have supposedly signed to agree to minimum wage rate?? never seen a contract! and they just keep fobbing me off. I have my solicitor on the job and when we get a contract, which I doubt we will he will take further, the problem here seems to be one of apathy and the sheep mentality, dont stand up for yourself, dont question and certainly dont rock the boat! nonsense, stand up to these idiots who thought they could scam all of us. I didnt take on work at minimum rate! I want to see this through to the end and I will if they think Im going away they have another thing coming! Im gonna sort this mess out and get some kind of justice for what I went through especially from Royal Mail Mallusk as I certainly didnt deserve to be humiliated for asking for money due for work I had completed. I have never in my career history been spoken to that way and it was both uncalled for and very unprofessional indeed the Management team who appointed this guy to work with us clearly overlooked his lack of communication skills and total empathy with what was happening, he certainly was'nt sympathetic to the fact we all had families to provide for for Christmas. We will wait to hear what happens Ill post the events a sthey happen.

[POSTMAN]

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

FURTHER payroll problems have seen outraged temporary postal workers out of pocket over Christmas and New Year.

Casual workers have been beset by problems throughout their month-long tenure at Royal Mail distribution sites in the town and now some are complaining they are still owed two weeks wages.

It comes after the Adver broke the news last month that many temporary staff had initially been allocated the wrong shifts, were turned away at the gates and had trouble getting hold of Angard Staffing – the firm responsible for employing them.

But a spokesman for Royal Mail said everyone who should have been paid has been and any further enquiries should be directed to Angard.

Among those who have yet to be paid for the last two weeks of work is Richard Smith, of Rodbourne, who was based at Groundwell Industrial Estate.

He received a text on Friday from Angard Staffing which read: “No issues are able to be rectified at Royal Mail sites and POL vouchers are no longer being issued.”

The 63-year-old said: “It’s utter rubbish. I’m owed 88 hours and I don’t know if I’ll ever see the money.

“They tell us to ring Angard but you can’t get hold of them. My wife has to ring because I’ve got tinnitus and am hard of hearing – she was on the phone for nearly 20 minutes and all they said was the system had crashed.

“I’m lucky because my wife works and I just wanted a bit of money to keep the car running but there are others who really need that money for day-to-day things.”

Another worker who is angry with the way temps have been treated is 19-year-old Jamie Brewer, of Park South, who was expecting to receive £486, but on Saturday received just £40.

He said: “I needed the money to help pay rent and chip in for food to help my nan out as she’s not well. I’m owed for two weeks work but on my payslip it says I only worked seven-and-a-half hours. I’ve rung and emailed Angard so many times and never had a response.

“I think it’s disgusting – it’s not fair the way they have messed people about.”

Another worker, who asked not to be named, said when he checked his account he saw he had been paid – the paltry sum of one penny.

He said: “I’ve been paid but only one penny. They still owe me another £200 – it’s a joke.”

Royal Mail spokesperson Sally Hopkins said: “The vast majority of our temporary Christmas workers were paid on time.

“We are committed to resolving any outstanding pay issues for individuals as quickly as possible. Royal Mail is very grateful to our temporary Christmas workers.

“They have played an important role in delivering the nation’s festive mailbag. We apologise again for any difficulties caused by delays in payment.”

[POSTMAN]

Royal Mail tells unpaid Christmas staff: you'll get the cash in 24 hours

http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/story ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

TEMPORARY workers from Derbyshire who were taken on by Royal Mail for the busy Christmas period claim they still have not been paid, even though the company says its payroll problems have been resolved.

Just after Christmas, some of the 118 extra staff who worked at Royal Mail's Midland Road sorting office in Derby complained they had not received their wages.

But on December 29, the company said its payroll problems had been sorted and that money would start coming through.

But some workers, who were taken on in December to handle the increase in mail in the run-up to Christmas, claim they are still waiting for their money.

One of those is Andrew Goostone, of Smalley, who worked at the sorting office for three weeks. He calculates that he is owed about £300.

He said: "I've spoken to Royal Mail again and they have promised that it will be resolved soon. I hope they are true to their word. Some of us need that money to pay the bills from Christmas.

"If I don't get that money my bank account will go into the red, which will mean I get charged by my bank."

Another Derby worker said: "The whole thing is a shambles.

"As I understand it, the problems lie with the employment agency Royal Mail used.

"When I started at Royal Mail they took my bank account details. They then contacted me to say they couldn't find them. I ended up giving my details four times.

"But when my pay slips came through they still got the details wrong."

The employment agency used was Angard Staffing Solutions – a firm owned by the Royal Mail Group, which was set up earlier this year to handle the postal service's temporary workforce requirements.

Although Royal Mail claims the "vast majority" of it temporary staff were paid on time, it is thought hundreds of workers did not get their cash.

A spokesman said: "We have spoken to Angard, who have told us that the outstanding wages will be in the accounts of the workers in the next 24 hours.

"We have never encountered problems like this before in all the years we have been using temporary workers. We apologise to these workers and I'm sure there will be an investigation into what went wrong."

Some workers have been issued vouchers which they can cash in for pay at any local post office.

As reported in the Derby Telegraph, Ben Newsome, 20, was paid despite never having worked for Royal Mail. He received £128.55 for 30 hours' work.

He had applied for a job at the firm but then decided not to take up the post. However he then found the cash from Royal Mail in his account.

Sharon Dean, 42, of Alvaston, was among those who initially missed out on wages.

She was instead able to claim her cash by taking a voucher she was given for the cash to a Post Office.