Strong offices vs Weak offices

BELIAL · Post by **BELIAL** » 01 Aug 2018, 21:58

number one wrote:
fishtank wrote:A weak office is a weakness in the union and therefore a danger to us all, rather than gloating a strong office should be asking questions of their relevant area reps and divisional reps why these offices are being allowed to be rolled over and placing the entire collective solidarity of the union at risk.

Or we can continue to point and laugh until we're the last unit standing and Royal Mail are doing the laughing.
The staff ARE the Union!!!!

Not so in my area ,give em a tiny carrot and they will happily slit a workmates throat, union reps included.It's the wild wild west. No rules ;no standards; every dog for himself ;cheers Tel.

fishtank · Post by **fishtank** » 02 Aug 2018, 06:52

number one wrote:The staff ARE the Union!!!!

I've heard that dumbass line more times than I've heard "I hope it's not bills"If that was really the case we wouldn't need a union structure at all or the £25 million in subs it takes to keep it going.

100 members in an office are exactly that, just 100 members with various views and opinions on what's right and wrong, what's important to them and what isn't, the 100 members in a strong office are no different to the 100 members in a weak office.

What makes it a strong office is the level of union organisation, information and engagement in that particular office or area and that starts with the local rep continues with the branch and should flow all the way up to the national officers. I've seen strong union support collapse in offices because of poor representation, same 100 members but no union engagement worth talking about. The "staff are NOT the union, the staff are the power of the union but that power needs to be harnessed and directed.

Martin Walsh · Post by **Martin Walsh** » 02 Aug 2018, 09:08

As some who covers over 118 delivery offices and 25 other offices including Mail centres , RDCs and collection hubs.

I don’t see offices in strong or weaker offices as there is a bigger number somewhere in the middle where they can be tough when the issues demand but accept absorbition and change as part and parcel of the changing job.

I know strong offices which were weak offices a few years ago but due to either executive action or a rouge DOM became united and now don’t accept any change and every day is a battle which is not a pleasant place to work.

We have some strong offices who walk in the canteen if any absorption take place and they are challenges to the union as much as they are to Royal Mail. Why ? Well technology through PDA’s , Automated Hours Data Capture , Final mile Optimisation and the new trail to be announced on resource scheduler which will be tagged to all of the above plus traffic outputs and has the ability to produce a duty schedule for each office based on the hours needed against the traffic expected. These offices have the biggest step change to make.

We have some very strong offices who stay under the radar they accept absorption and play the game and providing it is reasonable and they carry on without issues.

A strong local Rep who is either respected or liked in the office is a great asset and they should have support of the Area Rep and Branch and Branch must have the support of the Division. This may be easier in some Areas , Branch’s or Divisions due to locality. It is a lot easier to commute from Islington to Wood Green than it is to travel as an Area Rep from Carlisle to say Blackpool.

In terms of so called weak offices well they fall into different brackets , the friendly Dom who allows everyone to come in early and perform absorption and therefore the union and collective unity get marginalised as everyone just becomes obsessed with what happens to them. You get some weak offices who are split or don’t support the Rep and end up without a rep. Than you have a DOM who has their favourites and therefore splits the office.

Union. Organisation can change offices but it takes time.

The biggest concern I have is the membership have not got a real understanding of how the job is going to change in the next 18 months due to the technology which exists or will be coming on stream , the potential growth in LAT and of course the huge impact of not sorting your first wave into a frame .

fishtank · Post by **fishtank** » 02 Aug 2018, 14:58

of course the huge impact of not sorting your first wave into a frame .

That sounds a lot like a done deal dingo, trials going well are they?

clashcityrocker · Post by **clashcityrocker** » 02 Aug 2018, 16:58

dingo wrote:
The biggest concern I have is the membership have not got a real understanding of how the job is going to change in the next 18 months due to the technology which exists or will be coming on stream , the potential growth in LAT and of course the huge impact of not sorting your first wave into a frame .

Maybe someone should tell them then?
1. Your delivery office may be sold off and you might have a longer commute to work. The bigger the yard the safer it is.
2. Your start time will probably be pushed back for various reasons. (Might as well get it over with in one go)
3. Without a ridiculously long delivery span, full time jobs are unsustainable. Hybrid duties (delivery/packets or delivery/whatsleftofcollections) might save some full time jobs.
4. Guaranteed overtime will be a thing of the past. No more SA.

That sort of thing?

fishtank · Post by **fishtank** » 02 Aug 2018, 17:24

The problem with a hard dose of reality is how do you spin it in such a way that you can still swan about Wimbledon pretending you're anything other than an enabler for the business.

I'm a pragmatic enough guy, I'd rather follow the example of the Jimmy Reids of this world than the Arthur Scargills. In order to protect your terms and conditions you first of all have to have a job but the problem for me is that the union seem to want to sound like Arthur to the members while admitting behind the scenes that we're compromising on everything. That's why a lot of members won't accept these changes, because to them the union they belong to wouldn't accept these changes.

Perhaps Terry should explain honestly exactly what we're on the cusp of....

postslippete · Post by **postslippete** » 02 Aug 2018, 18:32

The biggest concern I have for Royal Mail is that they have a infallible tendency to put the cart before the horse when it comes to changes. And so what we are experiencing at the moment are unrealistic workplans, extraordinary lapsing, managers that don't have a clue about what is really happening and mail/packets being left on a duty for some poor bugger to do double the workload just because they had a day off. Of course, the DOM is quite happy for staff to come in early (in spite of health & safety because there are no managers or 1st aiders present) and he certainly knows how to stay under the radar!

DGH · Post by **DGH** » 02 Aug 2018, 19:39

clashcityrocker wrote: 3. Without a ridiculously long delivery span, full time jobs are unsustainable. Hybrid duties (delivery/packets or delivery/whatsleftofcollections) might save some full time jobs.

This is most pertinent. As and when indoor work drops to perhaps an hour at most, even with a 35 hour week there will be six hours available for delivery. Even allowing 40 minutes break (which I can't see being paid by RM in a 35 hour week) and 20 minutes travel to and from the office, that'd be 5 hours solid delivery and probably more like five and a half to six given unpaid lunch break and probably only half an hour or so's work allowed for inside pre-delivery. A long time walking.

BELIAL · Post by **BELIAL** » 02 Aug 2018, 22:31

1984; If anyone thinks PDA actuals are going to be used to optimize workload (which they could be) might I suggest they review RM's track record.
Fish rarely wear Trilby's .

Post by **Brandy** » 04 Aug 2018, 19:34

number one wrote:I sometimes can’t believe what I read about some offices where staff are not allowed to book extended delivery, told they must complete, get sent out to do extra work and so on. I work in a strong office where the staff will not be walked all over by any manager or area manager. The staff at my office run the place and we will not be taken as mugs. We never have a proplem with pay, overtime, extended delivery. We are never “forced” to do anything.

Why are so many offices weak and let staff be walked all over??

I think if everyone stuck together,then you wouldnt get this problem,but they wont,and until the posties do then this problem will never be solved.

Interested-seeker · Post by **Interested-seeker** » 04 Aug 2018, 20:09

Some issues at my office:

- Duty holders are moved onto other duties. Some on a daily basis! Someone taken off their duty and another coworker put on it
everyday. This duty holder treated like a reserve.

- People signing onto duties and no longer wanting them but keeping the contract. Duty will not be readvertised and is being filled by
reserves.

- No advertisement of duties in the last three months despite staff leaving.

- Hybrid delivery and collection staff....usually given too much delivery in too little time to do. Expected to come in earlier for free.
This was also the case at another office that I've worked in.

- Reserves going on holiday and not knowing what day and time they are due back.

- Reserves with same hourly contract, but one being on less days than the other.

- No overtime sheet.

To be fair, I don't think the managers have enough support and are bullied with tiny, impossible to meet budgets.

A lot of fellow staff seem fed up and cranky....bad atmosphere in there. Very demoralising when you don't know if you will be paid properly for overtime you do, makes me no longer want to go above and beyond.

mattjo1@talktalk.net · Post by **mattjo1@talktalk.net** » 05 Aug 2018, 10:22

Surely this thread should be changed to Hard Working Offices vrs Lazy Offices

To many people just moan and bitch about anything.

Remember we are getting paid a lot of money for unskilled labour, its not a hard job.

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 05 Aug 2018, 11:23

mattjo1@talktalk.net wrote:Surely this thread should be changed to Hard Working Offices vrs Lazy Offices

To many people just moan and bitch about anything.

Remember we are getting paid a lot of money for unskilled labour, its not a hard job.

Are you really attributing the state of offices to groupthink? If so it's an asinine argument that ignores individual responsibility, choice and action.

But then, perhaps this is just another drive-by post from you with no meat on the argument and no cognitive response to criticism of your point.

cpsteve · Post by **cpsteve** » 05 Aug 2018, 19:24

Some new posties will be out on delivery hours after others have gone home and the manager will try not to pay them rather then send early finishers out to help, thats bad management and the norm in the R/M. There is a selfish culture in the R/M and its us workers who are to blame as well as poor management. A good/strong office will help each other a weak office will be out for themselves. For me the problem is down to overtime, the company is run on it so management are scared to upset the posties who do it most of whom finish early and would not do it if if meant working late.

BELIAL · Post by **BELIAL** » 05 Aug 2018, 22:13

All examples of the CWU missing in action. Dead in the water; ceased to be ,wakey wakey,