Expanding Chester's RM sorting centre could create new jobs

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Expanding Chester’s Royal Mail sorting centre could create new jobs

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NEW jobs could be created if a mail sorting office is relocated to Chester.

Royal Mail yesterday announced its formal proposal to relocate the bulk of its processing operations from Shrewsbury to Chester, Cardiff and Wolverhampton as part of a wider review of mail centres across the UK.

Under the proposal, all mail posted to Shropshire and Mid Wales will be processed at the three other centres.

Chester Mail Centre would handle all mail for the SY (Shrewsbury and Mid Wales) postcode area and while 160 jobs could be lost at Shrewsbury the move could create a number of new posts at the Sealand Road site which lies on the Wales/England border.

Paul Parvin, Processing Director for Royal Mail, said mail volumes of items posted to addresses in the regionŠ from other parts of the UK have fallen by 48.6% in the last five years.Š

Mail volumes of items posted in Shropshire and Mid Wales to addresses outside the area have fallen by 35% in the same period.

He said: “Change is absolutely essential to meet customers’ expectations of a world class postal service, ensure we operate efficiently and provide a great quality of service in a smaller and changing market.”

“Any change to our mail centre in Shrewsbury will, unfortunately, impact on some colleagues. Our agreements with the CWU set out an agreed approach to managing these changes and we will be working very closely with the CWU and Unite CMA to support our people during what will, inevitably, be a period of uncertainty.

“This review is part of the ongoing modernisation and investment in our business.”

There are around 240 staff currently working at Shrewsbury but Royal Mail aim to minimise any job reductions and to make changes without compulsory redundancies.

Mr Parvin said the Royal Mail is consulting with staff and unions and a final decision is expected later this year.