Humbug. First class, of course

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Royal Mail Scrooges

Clearly, killjoy bosses at the Royal Mail don’t comprehend the glaring contradiction that lies behind their decision this week to order workers to take down a Christmas tree and Christmas cards from their places of work.

The contradiction, if they will allow us to point it out to them, is that the Royal Mail is an organisation which makes a great deal of its money from Christmas spirit – other people’s Christmas spirit, obviously. The message being sent out here is that while Royal Mail will do all it can to promote that warm Yuletide glow among the paying public, when it comes to its hard-working and hard-pressed staff at this time of year, the Scrooge-like message is, cut out the peace and goodwill and get back to work.

Removing Christmas decorations would probably be a bad idea in most working environments at any time, but when tensions remain high within Royal Mail over the unresolved dispute concerning pay and conditions, then it is an act of sheer stupidity. A Christmas tree and a handful of Christmas cards might not mean much on their own, but the order to take them down sends out a powerful signal to workers that talk of teamwork and mutual respect are only so much humbug and that they will be required to jump whenever bosses crack the whip.

It’s not even December yet, so it’s not too late for the Royal Mail to admit its mistake and let their workers enjoy a little seasonal warmth.

[andy2007]

Maybe Royal Mail bosses are more in favour of Yuletide than we think. After all, Yuletide (the Winter Solstice) was a time of Sacrifice and feasting. It just happens to be on the same date as Christmas (although it predates it).

Maybe, they think that if they sacrifice the service, our working conditions, Pensions, Jobs, etc.. They will be rewarded.

They obviously don't understand what Christmas is all about, or the fact that there are people of many Religions who celebrate Christmas, as a time for Family, and presents. So they wouldn't be offended by Christmas Trees, Decorations, Cards, etc.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Not a time for RM bosses to cause as much offence as possible to us.

[brothermagrew]

Maybe Royal Mail bosses are more in favour of Yuletide than we think. After all, Yuletide (the Winter Solstice) was a time of Sacrifice and feasting. It just happens to be on the same date as Christmas (although it predates it).

Maybe, they think that if they sacrifice the service, our working conditions, Pensions, Jobs, etc.. They will be rewarded.

They obviously don't understand what Christmas is all about, or the fact that there are people of many Religions who celebrate Christmas, as a time for Family, and presents. So they wouldn't be offended by Christmas Trees, Decorations, Cards, etc.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Not a time for RM bosses to cause as much offence as possible to us.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. A-hem! - Was Jesus Born in December? The Bible does not tell us when Jesus was born. However, it does give us sound reason to conclude that his birth did not take place in December. Over to you Andy me auld son.

[pinstripe]

They expect us to work even harder over Christmas. I know they pay our wages, but this just shows how much they really care about their employees. We have the one-sided attendance procedures, the enforced changes to duty times, the pension debacle, now this! This company just sucks now, if a small private company treated its employees this way, they'd go out of business as the staff would leave in droves and they'd never be able to train the replacements before they too left. Maybe this is RM's agenda.

[andy2007]

Maybe Royal Mail bosses are more in favour of Yuletide than we think. After all, Yuletide (the Winter Solstice) was a time of Sacrifice and feasting. It just happens to be on the same date as Christmas (although it predates it).

Maybe, they think that if they sacrifice the service, our working conditions, Pensions, Jobs, etc.. They will be rewarded.

They obviously don't understand what Christmas is all about, or the fact that there are people of many Religions who celebrate Christmas, as a time for Family, and presents. So they wouldn't be offended by Christmas Trees, Decorations, Cards, etc.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Not a time for RM bosses to cause as much offence as possible to us.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. A-hem! - Was Jesus Born in December? The Bible does not tell us when Jesus was born. However, it does give us sound reason to conclude that his birth did not take place in December. Over to you Andy me auld son.

You are quite right about the date. Christianity was repressed by the Romans for so long, that by the time that Christians were able to celebrate openly, no-one could remember the correct date.

They then got together and chose a date for the celebration. After all, it is better to pick a date and celebrate then, than not to celebrate at all. The date they chose was the 25th of December, as there was already a pre-Christian celebration (Yuletide) on that date.

Why they thought it would be good to have it on the same date as Yuletide, I don't know. No-one has been able to tell me as yet, although I would be interested in finding out.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

From wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas

It is unknown exactly when or why December 25 became associated with Jesus' birth. The New Testament does not give a specific date.[4] Sextus Julius Africanus popularized the idea that Jesus was born on December 25 in his Chronographiai, a reference book for Christians written in AD 221.[4] This date is nine months after the traditional date of the Incarnation (March 25), now celebrated as the Feast of the Annunciation. March 25 was considered to be the date of the vernal equinox and therefore the creation of Adam; early Christians believed this was also the date Jesus was crucified. The Christian idea that Jesus was conceived on the same date that he died on the cross is consistent with a Jewish belief that a prophet lived an integral number of years.[5] Thus, the date as a birth date for Jesus is traditional, and is not considered to be his actual date of birth. The mythological aspects of the birth narrative of Jesus in the gospels have been interpreted by those who ascribe to the Jesus myth hypothesis such that the figure of Jesus is seen as an a historical construct of various forms of ancient mythology, and that there was no historical Jesus, and thus no birth.

The identification of the birth date of Jesus did not at first inspire feasting or celebration. Tertullian does not mention it as a major feast day in the Church of Roman Africa. In 245, the theologian Origen denounced the idea of celebrating Jesus' birthday "as if he were a king pharaoh." He contended that only sinners, not saints, celebrated their birthdays[6].

The earliest reference to the celebration of Christmas is in the Calendar of Filocalus, an illuminated manuscript compiled in Rome in 354.[7][8] In the east, meanwhile, Christians celebrated the birth of Jesus as part of Epiphany (January 6), although this festival focused on the baptism of Jesus.[9]

Christmas was promoted in the east as part of the revival of Catholicism following the death of the pro-Arian Emperor Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. The feast was introduced to Constantinople in 379, to Antioch in about 380, and to Alexandria in about 430. Christmas was especially controversial in 4th century Constantinople, being the "fortress of Arianism," as Edward Gibbon described it. The feast disappeared after Gregory of Nazianzus resigned as bishop in 381, although it was reintroduced by John Chrysostom in about 400.

[L Tommo]

ITS JUST A MONEY MAKING SCAM FROM A TIME LONG LONG AGO..

Thats all it is..


AND AS A Mr Dave Allen said... "AND MAY YOUR GOD GO WITH YOU.."

No more no less...

The bible is a great story... Nice set of life rules.. But no more...

[andy2007]

ITS JUST A MONEY MAKING SCAM FROM A TIME LONG LONG AGO..

Thats all it is..


AND AS A Mr Dave Allen said... "AND MAY YOUR GOD GO WITH YOU.."

No more no less...

The bible is a great story... Nice set of life rules.. But no more...

So does this mean that you have no problem with RM taking down the decorations?

Personally, I'm a Christian, and do celebrate Christmas as Jesus's Birthday. But I know that the vast majority of people (in Britain at least) treat Christmas as a time to spend lots of money, and if they choose to do so, then it's fine by me.

My point is: RM seem to be trying to play the "respect other Religions" card. But it is now a multi Faith celebration, so that argument simply doesn't hold water!

My reference to the old Yuletide celebrations, was a sarcastic comment aimed at RM management.

[andy2007]

Although they went up very late (this week), we have been allowed to keep our Christmas decorations up. Have they let everyone else put theirs up now, or are there double standards?

[L Tommo]

Maybe Royal Mail bosses are more in favour of Yuletide than we think. After all, Yuletide (the Winter Solstice) was a time of Sacrifice and feasting. It just happens to be on the same date as Christmas (although it predates it).

Maybe, they think that if they sacrifice the service, our working conditions, Pensions, Jobs, etc.. They will be rewarded.

They obviously don't understand what Christmas is all about, or the fact that there are people of many Religions who celebrate Christmas, as a time for Family, and presents. So they wouldn't be offended by Christmas Trees, Decorations, Cards, etc.

Christmas is a time to get together, and Celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Not a time for RM bosses to cause as much offence as possible to us.

Im gonna become a PAGAN... They get more Holidays a year and all that dancing and drinking beer and frolicking about is just to much to NOT become one...

Dont fancy being sacrificed tho!!!


I blame these two.. :cfo :lfo

[L Tommo]

Although they went up very late (this week), we have been allowed to keep our Christmas decorations up. Have they let everyone else put theirs up now, or are there double standards?

Andy mate Im happy at Christmas But im Agnostic and happy for any religion to have there own faith is all i want... No hate or ill will to anyone...

Its all our rights to follow or not...

Its all about choice... And if The Norm as in Britain.. Is to put up xmas deco and act in the traditional way ie Celebrate Jesus's life and remember his sacrifice to the world then that also your choice... I dont believe...

I DO believe there is more than just US.... But what that is i just cant say for sure... ITS GOSSIP AND A GREAT STORY TOLD.. In my book THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD.....

Good film to....

I still blame these two/// :lfo :cfo

ps.. I do agree with you that RM are trying the PC Religous slant... And its wrong... Free will and all that... I wonder if in any Islamic country we would have a FREE WILL to put up a XMAS TREE AND DECO???? DONT THINK SO DO YOU ANDY????

[Stormproof]

I'm going to pop into the office in a bit and put the decs up in Callers, my colleague has'nt had time to put them up yet. We put them up every year, looks good and hopefully chills the customers out a bit before they get to the counter to have a go at us about something.

[L Tommo]

K66yla..

It gives the Public something to take it all out on apart from YOU... Nice one....


Let em rip n go mad When you tell em that "NO YOU CANT HAVE YOUR PACKET AS YOU AINT GOT YOUR ID"


Good luck over the silly period...

[andy2007]

Although they went up very late (this week), we have been allowed to keep our Christmas decorations up. Have they let everyone else put theirs up now, or are there double standards?

Andy mate Im happy at Christmas But im Agnostic and happy for any religion to have there own faith is all i want... No hate or ill will to anyone...

Its all our rights to follow or not...

Its all about choice... And if The Norm as in Britain.. Is to put up xmas deco and act in the traditional way ie Celebrate Jesus's life and remember his sacrifice to the world then that also your choice... I dont believe...

I DO believe there is more than just US.... But what that is i just cant say for sure... ITS GOSSIP AND A GREAT STORY TOLD.. In my book THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD.....

Good film to....

I still blame these two/// :lfo :cfo

ps.. I do agree with you that RM are trying the PC Religous slant... And its wrong... Free will and all that... I wonder if in any Islamic country we would have a FREE WILL to put up a XMAS TREE AND DECO???? DONT THINK SO DO YOU ANDY????

No, you're right, they wouldn't. But my argument about the managers who insisted that decorations were taken down, is that it is no longer just a Christian Celebration. People of all Religions celebrate Christmas.

It means a lot more to me, because of my Faith. But to try to repress the celebrations on the grounds of "Political Correctness" is wrong, because it's celebrated by the vast majority of us.

I was under the impression, from the original article, that RM were trying to stop anyone from having the decorations up. It now looks like I was wrong, as it's not just my Site which is allowed to have them up.

What is confusing me now though, is why did those managers inforce rules which didn't apply everywhere. Or did they change their minds, and allow the decorations to go back up?
Is there anyone from that Site on here?
Could you let us know what happened please?