To what extent do you rely on Royal Mail? Discuss.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

https://tamebay.com/2017/09/extent-rely ... scuss.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Is the Royal Mail an everyday service you rely on every day as an ecommerce seller and online retailer? It’s more than a blithe question. Could you live without it? What impact will Royal Mail strikes have on your business?

You may have to answer that question if the CWU and Royal Mail can’t agree because Royal Mail strikes could be on their way in the run-up to Christmas, ecommerce peak and Black Friday. Any such strike could be a huge headache for online sellers if it goes ahead.

If Royal Mail strikes really are coming in the peak period of business later this year (and we hope for a settlement that everyone can get behind), do you have options available to make sure that you can keep on trading, dispatching and running your business? There are couriers such as myHermes that will help you out and plenty of other shipping companies. Find them in the Tamebay Guide.

And that’s at the core of the issue. We’ve seen plenty of Royal Mail people commenting on Tamebay this week looking ahead to a Royal Mail strike. Many are relishing the prospect of industrial action.

One comment said: “Why do people compare postmen to other courier drivers? It’s a complete joke! The indoor sorting and amount of miles we walk carrying heavy bags is unreal and a courier driver wouldn’t last two days.” (Edited for clarity.)

Another adds: “There is easily enough posties who will be voting yes for strike action and yes pay should rise and stop withe the hermies and amozon crap you really need to get your facts right it will be a massive yes for strike action.” (sic.)

None of this article is grumbling about the tremendous work that good individual people put into making the Royal Mail what it is. Doubtless, like most, I’m on decent and friendly terms with my postie. My postie knows which of my neighbours will take a delivery for me when I’m out and make life easier for us all. More than that, my postie knows when to make a more vigorous knock because I’m upstairs and can’t quite hear the delivery visit. My postie makes light of the fact that I don’t rise early. (I take the piss too: that as a postie, everyone gets up later than they do. So he can foxtrot oscar.)

There has to be a realisation that the individuals of the Royal Mail are not being adequately taken care of under what has been previously agreed. Noone wants to see a pension cut. But the world of deliveries has changed a great deal, even in these past 5 years. So surely there can be a way to avoid strikes?