PEOPLE JUST DONT LIKE CHANGE...should swap walks every 3 months

nuns · Post by **nuns** » 24 Oct 2017, 15:22

I've been doing a few walks , as part time and some are much harder than others.
I think it would be much better for royal mail if they swapped every 3 months gives everyone a fair crack.
all the overtime gets shared properly as some people got no chance doing overtime after a hard walk (apart from just standard going over)

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 24 Oct 2017, 15:31

While on the face of it, it's a good idea to rotate staff and would make good business sense as everyone would eventually know every duty. I think you would lose that intrinsic trust you get between a Postie and their regulars.

We have a good few posts on here when residents get news stories and petitions going when their local postie is moved to another round.

Eventually, I would expect to see it coming in. Though I would expect the number of customer complaints to rise both initially and when the duties rotate.

nickbsmooth · Post by **nickbsmooth** » 24 Oct 2017, 15:43

Would be a great idea. The other advantage for this would be is that no one gets stuck on a crap duty for more than a few months.

twoloops · Post by **twoloops** » 24 Oct 2017, 15:44

Fantastic idea, could add to that, if your off sick for any reason loose your round, operate a league table type thing best rounds at the top, work your way up, sick back to the bottom.

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 24 Oct 2017, 15:51

mattycash wrote:Fantastic idea, could add to that, if your off sick for any reason loose your round,

Automatically illegal and would be considered unfair dismissal, or even constructive dismissal if it went to a tribunal. You can't remove someone from a duty based on sickness unless its to make reasonable adjustments under the EA. In fact, its all covered under the EA.

(this is an opinion as I am not a legal eagle).

fishtank · Post by **fishtank** » 24 Oct 2017, 16:03

I have to disagree with you Teebs which is unusual but it makes absolutely no business sense whatsoever, it would increase complaints and cost the business a great deal of overtime for no gain. I'm an office of 60 walks at 3 months per walk it would take 15 years to "learn" them all. How much are you going to remember about walk 1 after 15 years and is it going to look the same anyway.

The business gains from the present system in efficiency and lower levels of complaints, this wouldn't help anyone.

joewyan · Post by **joewyan** » 24 Oct 2017, 16:31

nuns wrote:I've been doing a few walks , as part time and some are much harder than others.
I think it would be much better for royal mail if they swapped every 3 months gives everyone a fair crack.
all the overtime gets shared properly as some people got no chance doing overtime after a hard walk (apart from just standard going over)

Sorry but I think that is a very bad idea. Personally I think customers much prefer having a regular postman still, for example, knowing roughly what time to expect their Mail.
Also, a regular postman knows customers who are in etc and can deliver more parcels first time. As a reserve who has previously had a walk in my old office I think the customers definitely prefer a regular.

Nigel1505 · Post by **Nigel1505** » 24 Oct 2017, 16:50

joewyan wrote:
nuns wrote:I've been doing a few walks , as part time and some are much harder than others.
I think it would be much better for royal mail if they swapped every 3 months gives everyone a fair crack.
all the overtime gets shared properly as some people got no chance doing overtime after a hard walk (apart from just standard going over)
Sorry but I think that is a very bad idea. Personally I think customers much prefer having a regular postman still, for example, knowing roughly what time to expect their Mail.
Also, a regular postman knows customers who are in etc and can deliver more parcels first time. As a reserve who has previously had a walk in my old office I think the customers definitely prefer a regular.

Quite right. Local knowledge = Better service in every aspect of the job.

world class male · Post by **world class male** » 24 Oct 2017, 17:27

would cause trouble between colleagues no doubt
team A, 2 young fairly fit lads did 3 months, always completed on time, with no complaints
team B, 2 more senior guys, aching joints most days, can't complete and get grief daily off dom as to why not, complaints then roll in, 1 lady moans previous lads always hid parcels, another complains they also took them 5 doors up to her sisters and so on
and that's before they argue amongst themselves because 1 team gets the nice area at xmas with plenty of tips

deltaforce · Post by **deltaforce** » 24 Oct 2017, 17:47

nickbsmooth wrote:Would be a great idea. The other advantage for this would be is that no one gets stuck on a crap duty for more than a few months.

All walks are equall, but some walks are more equall than others. ( old royal mail saying)

smok3y666 · Post by **smok3y666** » 24 Oct 2017, 17:55

nuns wrote:I've been doing a few walks , as part time and some are much harder than others.
I think it would be much better for royal mail if they swapped every 3 months gives everyone a fair crack.
all the overtime gets shared properly as some people got no chance doing overtime after a hard walk (apart from just standard going over)

WHAT? Imagine the uproar from the seniors having to do some work.

DGH · Post by **DGH** » 24 Oct 2017, 18:03

5 monthly rotation (so Christmas always swaps) with walks/paired duties put into 'sets' of three or four (so you rotate within one set) would cut down on the complaints issue, see a wider spread of walk knowledge and slightly longer term see walks within each set balanced for workload). It'd be pretty sensible really and if someone leaves, their replacement can simply step into the gap. On paired duties of both walkholders had synchronised days off then a pair of floaters could cover that. You might even see the glimmer of real teamwork (not RM's bastardised idea of that).

Never happen - too much vested interest.

tonytucker · Post by **tonytucker** » 24 Oct 2017, 18:05

Dont think so ,its calked senority pal

Post by **eastie** » 24 Oct 2017, 18:26

It sounds good but in areas of growth where there is massive growth of housebuilding there would be no point .
We have rounds that have changed 2 or 3 times due to changes from extra homes. It may work in inner cities which stay roughly the same but in town that are expanding it wouldn't work

DGH · Post by **DGH** » 24 Oct 2017, 18:32

tonytucker wrote:Dont think so ,its calked senority pal

Yes. Seniority is the vested interest to which I refer.

Of course seniority could still work, it's just you'd get your pick of rotation, not your pick of individual job. Seniority is often touted as 'the least unfair way', but it isn't. Walk rotation would be fairer. And of course in the old days people rotated in sets (nights - delivery - afternoons') so the principle is actually an old one which worked under seniority.

eastie wrote:It sounds good but in areas of growth where there is massive growth of housebuilding there would be no point .
We have rounds that have changed 2 or 3 times due to changes from extra homes. It may work in inner cities which stay roughly the same but in town that are expanding it wouldn't work

There would be a point, actcherloi . . . you'd see the new builds allocated more fairly rather than lumped on a single walk or pairing as happens now. Or rather the workload would be distributed more evenly because all the members of the set would have a vested interest in ensuring a fair workload