6 week review

Whinge88 · Post by **Whinge88** » 10 May 2018, 18:48

Hello all.
Now in my 7th week and want to share my experiences so far.
Bear in mind this is my own experience, in the office I’m in.
Turned up for my first day after induction. No one was expecting me. Seriously.
I still have no idea who the work coach is our office.
I was with someone for 2 days before going off on my own (well technically van sharing) but doing my own rounds.
No one told me that you have to have a 4 hour driving assessment before your allowed to drive yourself.
As part of the application process you send a picture for your ID. I still haven’t got one. I log in the pda, everyday using different peoples ID.
I heard a lot of negatives about management. Listen to people but be your own person. I enjoy working with my manager.
Parcels. I hate parcels. You will too
Stiff/sideways/hidden letterboxes. I hate these. You will too
Plenty of overtime, but your restricted really until your allowed to drive
WRITE DOWN ALL HOURS WORKED. And if you work over finish time CLAIM OVERTIME
You can’t prepare your body for what’s to come. It’s the last hour or so that kills. Your bodies tired but you’ve got to keep moving.
I am currently writing this with my feet in a bowl of water to sooth the 4 blisters I have.

What I’ve said may seem negative, but it’s just an honest reflection of my first few weeks in the job.

That said though.

I have never been so happy at work.
I enjoy my job.
I enjoy getting up and going to work
I enjoy the colleges I work with
I enjoy the banter in the office during sorting
I enjoy the respect your (mostly) given when out
I enjoy the weather. It’s something else in the heat (keep hydrated though)
I enjoy working for Royal Mail

If there’s any questions I can answer then fire away, and I’ll see if I can help.

It’s a long recruitment process, but so worth it in the end

Samanthafletcher12 · Post by **Samanthafletcher12** » 10 May 2018, 19:25

Wow what an amazing and helpful post thank you. I’m currently waiting for my security check to go through I have tracked it and it’s complete with DBS but haven’t heard anything from the Royal Mail. Did you have a lot of waiting to hear from anyone? I can’t wait to start but haven’t been given a starting date or contract yet

stephen_o · Post by **stephen_o** » 10 May 2018, 19:59

Hi, Can I ask how you fared with the "aspects" assessment? I couldn't finish the final 2 I have done so far and have had no feedback either way yet.

Cheers

Stephen

Jacko29 · Post by **Jacko29** » 10 May 2018, 20:47

hi, thanks for that post! It’s really helpful. I can’t wait to start! How long did it take you to hear from submitting photo to get a start date?!

Lfc1972 · Post by **Lfc1972** » 11 May 2018, 17:42

Great post Whinge88, it's nice to see a positive one.

I am currently 9 weeks in and like you had to use others peoples pda sign ins and still no I'd. All I did was keep nagging the bloke who does them to do it, he soon got fed up with me! Got my sign in and he's sent off the id. I am also on a shared van duty with a full timer, I am only part time (26.5 hrs). We are lucky in that we are never late back so recording overtime is never a issue for us. I feel your pain, my last hour is spent doing blocks of flats with no lifts, on a positive note the weight is coming off what with the stairs and walking approx 8 miles a day.

I thoroughly agree with your sentiments I love my job it's the best I've ever done especially as it took me 2.5 years to eventually be successful. I am so proud to wear my uniform and say I'm a postie and wouldn't change it for the world.

itinerant · Post by **itinerant** » 12 May 2018, 15:43

I agree, great post!

I am 6 months in having joined last November just as the Xmas madness was kicking in which was a real eye opener but I survived that and really enjoy it.

It takes a few months to fully bed in to the job (physically and mentally!) so my best advice for newbies is to stick with it if you find it really tough in the first few weeks.

There is a lot to learn initially but soon enough it all becomes second nature and it takes a while, but your body will cope with the challenge (I do 11+ miles a day on one of my walks on my own and it was hard graft initially doing this day in day out but you do get used to it and its great to be paid to keep fit!).

It is frustrating waiting for your start date (constantly monitoring your application on-line waiting for the status to change!) but you just need to be patient as it seems the process is generally just very slow.

Jacko29 · Post by **Jacko29** » 12 May 2018, 18:39

Hi guys, all your comments are great, really looking forward to starting the job. I know it will be hard to begin with but I am tough and don’t give up that easily! Eventually it will just become normal. Really excited about it.

Have any of you lost weight since starting? Also do you park at the DO or do you travel to work by other means?

Thanks

Lfc1972 · Post by **Lfc1972** » 12 May 2018, 20:30

Personally yes I have lost weight, it's coming off slowly which is the best way. I can park at my DO but I am very lucky that I live under a mile away from mine and now the weather is nicer I cycle in which also helps with the weight loss. You will love it when you start and any aches and pains you get will get easier. Look after your feet, I use gel insoles as the balls of my feet hurt the most and treat them to a soak in hot water with witch hazel in it to harden them up (recommended to me by a long serving postie)

itinerant · Post by **itinerant** » 13 May 2018, 05:19

Jacko29 wrote:Hi guys, all your comments are great, really looking forward to starting the job. I know it will be hard to begin with but I am tough and don’t give up that easily! Eventually it will just become normal. Really excited about it.

Have any of you lost weight since starting? Also do you park at the DO or do you travel to work by other means?

Thanks

I have lost over a stone in 6 months and I was already a healthy weight (I am now trying to put some back on!).

I think it depends on your DO re parking. We do not have any spaces at our DO so I park for free on a road 5 minutes walk away (I start early so never have a problem finding a space).

As Lfc1972 says, look after your feet! I still suffer sometimes and have started wearing decent running socks (padded at the heel and on the top of the foot) which seem to work for me.

Jacko29 · Post by **Jacko29** » 13 May 2018, 16:46

Hi,
LFC- i live 7 miles away from my DO, I will ask if I can park there but I have a feeling it will be no as it’s in a town centre and from what I’ve seen quite small. I have contemplated cycling as I used to be a keen cyclist and it would be great to start it up again. Thanks for the foot care advice, im definitely going to get decent socks, insoles and like you said soak them in witch hazel!

MIke- that sound fantastic! At least you can eat what you want and get away with it (kind of!). Thanks for the idea regarding the running socks, sounds like a good plan!

ABG21/22 · Post by **ABG21/22** » 15 May 2018, 07:11

Once you have had shin splints you can consider yourself broken in.

I have been in exactly one year now and most people feel the same in the first few months. You may not get a badge for a long time , we have posties who have waited years. Lockers are the same as are login details for PDa's. RM are slow .You will also encounter dogs and bloody cats behind letterboxes , you will trip going up steps and stairs and most annoying you will drop your bundle of mail just as you start a loop spreading mail everywhere.Order uniform as soon as you start online or you may find your manager has used your allocation for other people.If you haven't started practice walking at least 10 miles a day which is what my duty currently is (except its mostly stairs and uphill). That is by no means a long walk.
The best bit of help I can give is to keep going and don't go backwards (if you forget a letter or someone shouts you back). There are lots of things in this job that slow you down like leaving the office late , traffic , signed for letters and parcels , cutting off to do oversize , not getting into flats/closes the list goes on. Be prepared for the day and just keep going. Be organised.

Jacko29 · Post by **Jacko29** » 15 May 2018, 10:13

ABG21/22 wrote:Once you have had shin splints you can consider yourself broken in.
I have been in exactly one year now and most people feel the same in the first few months. You may not get a badge for a long time , we have posties who have waited years. Lockers are the same as are login details for PDa's. RM are slow .You will also encounter dogs and bloody cats behind letterboxes , you will trip going up steps and stairs and most annoying you will drop your bundle of mail just as you start a loop spreading mail everywhere.Order uniform as soon as you start online or you may find your manager has used your allocation for other people.If you haven't started practice walking at least 10 miles a day which is what my duty currently is (except its mostly stairs and uphill). That is by no means a long walk.
The best bit of help I can give is to keep going and don't go backwards (if you forget a letter or someone shouts you back). There are lots of things in this job that slow you down like leaving the office late , traffic , signed for letters and parcels , cutting off to do oversize , not getting into flats/closes the list goes on. Be prepared for the day and just keep going. Be organised.

hi, thanks for the post. You mentioned you walk 10 miles, how much time do you get to do this? I am starting to walk daily and building it up but would like a rough time guide for 10 miles. Cheers Jacko

Samanthafletcher12 · Post by **Samanthafletcher12** » 15 May 2018, 18:12

Any news jacko?

Jacko29 · Post by **Jacko29** » 15 May 2018, 18:15

Just checked my DBS tracking again and still says in progress with PNC search.

Samanthafletcher12 · Post by **Samanthafletcher12** » 15 May 2018, 19:53

I haven’t either. Mine was completed on the 9th and the Royal Mail still say they haven’t heard back from dbs. I can’t get the certificate up to forward it to them