Prioritising parcels over mail...

Woody Guthrie · Post by **Woody Guthrie** » 06 Sep 2020, 11:37

Postal regulation (USPA5) prohibits us from prioritising our own mail over Downstream Access (DSA) mail.

Parcels are mostly ours, letters are mostly DSA.

1. Is this a breach of Postal regulation USPA5?

2. Will USPA5 survive the regulator review?

postslippete · Post by **postslippete** » 06 Sep 2020, 12:16

Pre-covid letters were just as important as the parcels because we have a USO on the letters.
Fast forward several months and mail is still being left in frames whilst everything has been parcels, parcels, parcels. Managers are only giving overtime for any staff to deliver the tracked parcels but not loops or ordinary parcels.

While parcels are important to our business and it is a growing industry I don't understand Royal Mail because they said not so long ago that they would start prioritising the mail because we only profit when we deliver the parcels with the mail??

terry2972 · Post by **terry2972** » 06 Sep 2020, 17:52

In my office we clear most days and overtime is paid isn’t overtime available in every office?

Seymour Buts · Post by **Seymour Buts** » 06 Sep 2020, 19:01

terry2972 wrote:In my office we clear most days and overtime is paid isn’t overtime available in every office?

Seems different from office to office. No booking in ours; if you can't complete you leave mail. All 'pressure' overtime appears to be used in early morning IPS.

Yamr1 · Post by **Yamr1** » 06 Sep 2020, 21:19

USO is changing we all no it matter of weeks till it's announced then pushed in .....

Yamr1 · Post by **Yamr1** » 06 Sep 2020, 21:20

5days instead of 6 or worse

EU mostly 3 day uso

elteleltel · Post by **elteleltel** » 06 Sep 2020, 21:40

Yep get your Tracked done at all costs ,to help yourself you don't want to deliver 2 days worth of parcels so I/ we make sure they are done and leave the Mail...it's the way forward apparently

Dorset Plodder · Post by **Dorset Plodder** » 13 Sep 2020, 20:27

Yamr1 wrote:USO is changing we all no it matter of weeks till it's announced then pushed in .....

Where do you get your information from? So far nothing's been said by Royal Mail, of the CWU and anything else is just speculation.

I realise that RMC is a "Discussion Forum" but talk to 10 Posties and you'll get 10 different widely differing "Opinions", and we all know what they say about "Opinions".

We're all entitled to our "Opinions" but let's stop spreading the Gloom & Doom until we actually know what's being proposed. I'm sure we'll all feel the better for it.

Woody Guthrie · Post by **Woody Guthrie** » 13 Sep 2020, 20:34

I don't think there's much guesswork involved in stating that the USO will change.
That's a nailed on fact.
What it will change into is the guesswork.

Woody Guthrie · Post by **Woody Guthrie** » 13 Sep 2020, 20:35

EU mostly 3 day uso

That isn't true.

Post by **SpacePhoenix** » 13 Sep 2020, 21:02

Normal priority locally is:

SDs > Tracked > Parcels > Mech Mail > Non-Mech Mail

If we're really short on staff then some sequence batches will just get walk sorted to get mech staff onto parcels or Tracked as soon as possible

Janet Brum · Post by **Janet Brum** » 13 Sep 2020, 21:25

Dorset Plodder wrote:
Yamr1 wrote:USO is changing we all no it matter of weeks till it's announced then pushed in .....
Where do you get your information from? So far nothing's been said by Royal Mail, of the CWU and anything else is just speculation.

I realise that RMC is a "Discussion Forum" but talk to 10 Posties and you'll get 10 different widely differing "Opinions", and we all know what they say about "Opinions".

We're all entitled to our "Opinions" but let's stop spreading the Gloom & Doom until we actually know what's being proposed. I'm sure we'll all feel the better for it.

Losing one day off USO is already a fact as is stated in the 8th of September AGM: https://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/communi ... 18&t=97388" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Regulatory change

Given the pace and extent of change in what customers want from Royal Mail, the business also needs the flexibility to adapt its customer offering to deliver what our customers want.

We have surveyed the views of thousands of customers about what they want from postal services. We have also held hundreds of sessions with colleagues about how they think the Universal Service Obligation (USO) may need to change for the future. The headline insights on the USO that we have gained are clear.

First, our customers want to retain the ‘one price goes anywhere’ principle of the USO.
Second, they want more ways to send letters and parcels – whether it is online postage or parcel postboxes – and more frequent and convenient parcel deliveries. We want to look again at whether there is enough customer demand for a seven-day parcel service.
Third, they still want an affordable next-day letters service. This is especially important for businesses during the working week.

These findings tell us that the best way to ensure the Universal Service continues to meet our customers’ needs is to rebalance our service model more towards the growing parcels market, particularly urgent parcels and urgent letters. We are currently exploring what a rebalanced Universal Service might look like. We remain committed to the universal, affordable “one price goes anywhere” nature of the USO, but we would like to deliver the items that customers want more often, not less. To do that we need a regulatory system fit for the future rather than the past.

Over the coming weeks we will be meeting with more customers and other stakeholders to explore these issues in greater detail. We will share our insights with Ofcom and the Government in the Autumn. The upcoming Ofcom review of both USO user needs and its wider regulatory framework for the postal market will be vital in securing a platform which permits both the investment required to deliver the USO demanded by the public and for that service to be delivered sustainably. Any decision is a matter for the Regulator, Government and ultimately Parliament - but we need to make sure this review process is considered swiftly given the rapidly changing customer needs and the financial sustainability of the Universal Service.

Post by **aiden01** » 13 Sep 2020, 21:45

Where in that statement does it say we are losing a day off uso.

Manboat · Post by **Manboat** » 13 Sep 2020, 21:47

If we go to 7 days for parcels can they bring a 2nd cheaper workforce in or do they have to use existing staff, I’m sure they’d love to get the work done at the rates most other companies pay their staff, just hope it’s not a possibility as we need to save jobs from the losses the 5 day week will bring although I realise there will be plenty of people moaning about working Sundays if it happens.

Janet Brum · Post by **Janet Brum** » 13 Sep 2020, 22:22

aiden01 wrote:Where in that statement does it say we are losing a day off uso.

Here:

These findings tell us that the best way to ensure the Universal Service continues to meet our customers’ needs is to rebalance our service model more towards the growing parcels market, particularly urgent parcels and urgent letters.