How much in tips did you get this xmas?

[Sir Henry]

It's time for Henry's annual Xmas tips post and for the umpteenth year running the grand total is zero.

It's nice to maintain Xmas traditions I feel.

[sorefeet17]

More likely to get a tip from an older person - as in over 40 - than from a younger person but even this isn't a hard & fast rule. Essentially it comes down to it they want to or don't want to give you a tip. The majority won't tip you so about 30% of households will, but often only if you catch them on the doorstep, and 70% generally won't give you a tip. I don't think being rich or poor is a factor either as most people have a few pounds or some chocolates to spare.

30% ? more like 2% for me! although the ones that do tip seem to be making an effort to catch me this year, and some have upgraded from a £5 to a £10

[norris9]

With the lack of tips it does make me think 'Why do I tip the waitress who does 3 minutes work for me'.

I pay out more in tips to waiters/waitresses in a year than I get in tips from hundreds of people I work for 5 days a week all year.

[sorefeet17]

With the lack of tips it does make me think 'Why do I tip the waitress who does 3 minutes work for me'.

I pay out more in tips to waiters/waitresses in a year than I get in tips from hundreds of people I work for 5 days a week all year.

I read an article the other day about bar workers missing out on Christmas tips because of Covid closers, one guy who worked in a Scottish hotel said he would normally get £800-£1000 in Dec alone in tips

[ploddington]

Between us both just over £4oo, 35 bottles of wine,2 Jim beam, individually also 5 tins biscuits, 9 boxes of chocks, aftershave set,
My customers are really lovely

[blacov]

Between us both just over £4oo, 35 bottles of wine,2 Jim beam, individually also 5 tins biscuits, 9 boxes of chocks, aftershave set,
My customers are really lovely

Between me and you I got £0 but I am sure money I made over xmas madness is enough to match your £400 ish tips with enough spare change to buy all the treats you have listed.

[number one]

I’m not surprised most of the miserable lot in here have received nothing hahaha.

[Alexei]

Ah yes, the annual brown-nosing*ahem* popularity contest

[norris9]

£60 and 2 bottles of wine.

Prob would have had more if I didn't wear earphones and walk as fast as Usain Bolt. Someone was chasing me down the road with a tenner and I didn't realise. His wife came out to tell me he had been chasing me and she gave me the tenner.

[HTPostman]

Not a thing from the public. I don’t really blame the customers, they don’t know me from Adam. I thought my luck was in when an old dear came to me in the street and said ‘excuse me I just wanted to say what a great job you’ve done keeping us going in lockdown’ time stopped still as I thought she’d dig out a fiver from her handbag but she just got her bus pass out as the bus approached

It’s those who’s rural rounds I’ve covered when they’ve been on annual leave I’m a bit peed off at. One guy was off sick for 3 months from December to February, I covered his round all that time, not been given a thing even though he’s telling everyone how he’s had £400, so many boxes of chocolates, wines etc.

Another guy I’ve covered his round for 5 weeks when he’s been on annual leave. Not a thing even though he’s given the day off cover man stuff.

Now the final guy, I’ve probably done his round 15 times this year. He’s given me 3 tubs of chocolate, a bottle of wine and 2 boxes of biscuits.

Going into 2021 who’s round do we think I’ll make that extra special effort on? Who’s round will I continue to stay out till 4.30pm on a Saturday so it’s clear for when he gets back on the Monday? Who’s round will I take the difficult calls? Who’s round will I remember who takes what parcel and who’s round will I just slip parcels if neighbours aren’t in?

HTPostman never forgets. Anyway, merry Christmas

[Selhurst]

My biggest tip yesterday was a dog bite and a parking ticket. Merry Christmas to the dog I put my size 8’s up and to the arse of a traffic warden. Hope to see him/her in the new year

[Murdoch]

Imagine the chaos of different people delivering each day ,you would have "Dave leaves my parcels there but Margaret leaves then here" meanwhile Pete just puts a 739 through and Rob tries a neighbour.
Wouldn't be much incentive to try neighbours , most regulars try to keep the customer happy whilst the rest day ,float person has so much more to remember and is less likely to " go the extra mile "

In my experience. Regular Posties who "go the extra mile" generally sign for everything themselves, and leave parcels in bins.

Royal Mail's argument would be, there are delivery standards that should be followed, and no matter who is on the duty they should be the same. But as everybody knows all too well. If you actually do this job by the book you can't get anything f***ing delivered.

So, the longer you're on a duty and you get to know the customers and their "requests", the more likely it is that you regularly break the delivery standards. However, the customers come to expect (or demand) that as the norm, and are annoyed or confused when any other postie does something "by the book".

And there lies the problem.

There are solutions to this. But then, we're sooooo slooooooooow to embrace the solutions.

[Lenston]

I'm a reserve but I've been left on the same job almost the entire year. Ended up with £70 and a box of chocolates.

Thought I'd done OK until my colleague on the neighbouring round said he'd had over £500!

[Alexei]

Imagine the chaos of different people delivering each day ,you would have "Dave leaves my parcels there but Margaret leaves then here" meanwhile Pete just puts a 739 through and Rob tries a neighbour.
Wouldn't be much incentive to try neighbours , most regulars try to keep the customer happy whilst the rest day ,float person has so much more to remember and is less likely to " go the extra mile "

In my experience. Regular Posties who "go the extra mile" generally sign for everything themselves, and leave parcels in bins.

Royal Mail's argument would be, there are delivery standards that should be followed, and no matter who is on the duty they should be the same. But as everybody knows all too well. If you actually do this job by the book you can't get anything f***ing delivered.

So, the longer you're on a duty and you get to know the customers and their "requests", the more likely it is that you regularly break the delivery standards. However, the customers come to expect (or demand) that as the norm, and are annoyed or confused when any other postie does something "by the book".

And there lies the problem.

There are solutions to this. But then, we're sooooo slooooooooow to embrace the solutions.

Agree with this post. Have been covering duties before and the recipient of a packet has spoken to me through his Ring device 'but the other postie usually leaves it round the back' ... 'Yes, well I'm very sorry sir, but he shouldn't be doing that and is putting his job at risk, and as you can quite clearly see, I'm not your regular postie, so I'm not comfortable doing that, so once again, I'm sorry.'

But yes, the longer time on a duty usually correlates with more earnings in tips. There was a PT bloke in our office years ago that had a 2.5-3 hour duty (before van sharing) that took him 6+ hours purely because he was speaking to everyone on the duty. He was always one of the top earners of tips.

[FirstPost]

few in office got £1000+