FAO Custardy... "Summer Savings" problems?

StaffsSW

bummer... have you heard anything on how it's going across the rest of the UK?

custardy

not too much but i would expect a similar situation in general
to be fair my office is very busy with many large firms,banks etc plus residentials meaning we handle a lot of mail and in particular high numbers of psecial deliveries

jo_b_2

My post has been realy late (mid-afternoon) for the last couple of weeks and we've had a different postie. (I was on 'smiling and helloing' terms with the original one.)

All of a sudden, I've been going a few days without any post (which is very unusual for me.) Yesterday, he posted all of my post through next-door's. :rolleyes: (She gave them back to me and said she was surprised when she heard a big pile of post plopping through the door!)

God knows where the rest of my post has ended up! I'm missing some vouchers from Warburtons for a (genuine) complaint and my OH's V5 for his new car hasn't shown up yet either!

Don't know if any of these issues are related to this 'summer savings' issue or just coincidental.

custardy

well most likely its some poor part timer who got a couple of days training,then got plonked on a duty he/she has never seen
no advice/help to tie the mail up,then plonked on the street and left to it
ive seen part timers leave the office after 12,which for a 3.5 hour delivery span for someone who knows the duty can mean a 5pm or later finish

things are getting silly now,ive been on 6 days for weeks now,no time for breaks either
this week im on 7 days as i need to catch up on computer/paperwork
next week we are having further staff cuts including the permanent removal of nightshift staff from the office

custardy

like this article,i expect privitisation of RM in the not so distant future

06 June 2008 by Mark White -


Following an overwhelming rejection of pension reform by staff at Royal Mail earlier this year, and rumour that the government may be considering selling off parts of the business in an attempt to rescue what many now regard as a failed deregulation plan, some inside the union say that the Communication Workers Union is preparing for a full confrontation with Gordon Brown. Timing may be factor here though.

Next week is of course the CWU Conference, and those jostling for a better position within the union will be far more vocal than they might otherwise be, with stirring speeches aimed at raising the profile of branch leaders and just about anyone interested in pushing Hayes off the top of the heap. The more militant end of Royal Mail's workforce, notably from Liverpool, were furious that having brought Britain's postal network to a standstill, Hayes was asking union members to accept most of the proposals put forward by Royal Mail bosses and return to work. With it being conference week, CWU leader Billy Hayes is expected to deliver more fighting talk to demonstrate that he still has the strength of character to remain in the job, but not everyone thinks he has. Some are even threatening to turn up at the conference and tell Hayes what they really think of him.

On the other side of the coin, the Labour party depends rather heavily on union money and already effectively bankrupt, the union is likely to push the Labour party against the ropes to try and scupper attempts to part-privatise Royal Mail.

Trying to establish just how much of Royal Mail's downturn in business is due to the rise in email use, increased competition, or lack of confidence in the wake of strike action, isn't easy, but postal deregulaton has undoubtedly made things worse. An independent review this year, in combination with input from Postcomm, Postwatch, and rival operators, made it clear that deregulation was having little impact in terms of increased quality and choice for small business and consumers and the prospect of postal companies fighting it out on deliveries is practically zilch.

Rather than unwind a series of badly placed knots, many experts predict that the government will opt to cut itself loose from Royal Mail altogether and sell parts of Royal Mail to the private sector in an effort to stabilise the business. The CWU maintain that Royal Mail is being badly served by Chief Executive Adam Crozier and that he is being grossly overpaid for letting the service run down rather than improving or developing it.

In any event, privatisation is a step too far for the CWU who accuses the government of going back on pledges to keep Royal Mail in the public sector and of allowing the postal network to deteriorate through sheer incompetence.

PM Gordon Brown has plenty of problems already and with little confidence in his leadership either from his own party or the electorate, and a massive credit crisis, a concerted effort from trade unions could spell disaster for the government and Labour finances. Many argue that the UK was far too quick to take on postal liberalisation without looking properly at the effect it would have on even basic postal services. The post office network even now, is far too centered around Royal Mail's own business at a time when it should be, if deregulation is to continue, concentrating on developing these access points to encompass all postal operators.

Next week is likely to be an interesting one, not only for the future of Royal Mail, but whether Hayes or Crozier will hold onto their seats in the long run. The drive to privatise elements of Royal Mail operations continues and it may be only a matter of time before it is rebranded as "The postal operator formerly known as Royal Mail".

custardy

well as we now call it in our office,summer (col)lapsing is causing major problems
so much so that we are lapsing the lapsing next week
so no lapsing next week until we 'sort it out'?????
today we had failed special deliveries on a van duty
technically not a failure as they hadnt paid for saturday delivery but we always attempt delivery on residentials/open businesses in our office
we had no staff(as is the norm now)
only 2 to cover the callers office(inc me) so a queue up the car park and onto the street pretty much all morning
they had a part time trainee from another office taking a full walk out
she had never done a duty on her own and gets put on her own in an area she doesnt know
they also got a guy from another office who was moved from ours for assaulting another member of staff

custardy

well summer lapsing is nearly over,has caused major problems and a huge rise in complaints for those unfortunate enough to live on a lapsed duty.
however its not over,RM now want to bring in lapsing as a permanent 'feature'
in my own office they want to add another 2 duties into the lapsing
so thats approx 10% of the foot delivery duties 'covered' in lapsing

CaroB_2

I wonder if this 'summer lapsing' has been the cause of our mail problems, then - over the last few weeks the mail service to our flat has been dreadful. The main problem is that our postman doesn't buzz all the flats in our block (I suspect the 'service' buzzer doesn't work though I've never tried it for fear of annoying the neighbours!!) and so quite often we get no post because he/she was unable to gain entry. This happens even when we are in all day. This wouldn't be a problem as I understand that delivering to tenements during the day can be difficult in terms of gaining entry, however what used to happen was that the post was then delivered the next day with "N/E" and the date written on it.
But in the last few weeks we've had no post on most Fridays, and then the post is usually delivered on Monday (not Saturday, even though we get deliveries most Saturdays). One week 3 items of post were delivered on Monday with n/e the previous Friday and then one item (a bill) wasn't delivered until the Thursday - where on earth had it been for this time?

The worst incidents involved Fringe tickets I'd bought, as you've probably noticed there have been problems with the ticketing system at the Fringe and so the tickets were sent out very late. Our first show was on a Thursday but the tickets didn't arrive until Friday - but with n/e from the Tuesday!!! We'd had post on Wednesday and Thursday so I can only think the postie must have taken them home in his bag and forgotten to bring them back until Friday. Surely this is not allowed?

So, custardy, as someone who works for RM in Edinburgh, is it likely that some of the lapsed areas might be the more studenty areas as these would be viewed as having 'light' mail over the summer? So perhaps our route has been given to someone else to complete along with their usual route, and they either don't have time to complete it due to the extra work they've been given, or decide to save time by not climbing the stairs in every block? Where does mail go when it's not delivered, and why is it not made available to the Saturday postman (who I believe is a different person)? Yesterday was my birthday and I was quite upset not to receive any post at all (. I know for a fact that at least one of our neighbours, a retired couple, are in most days & as the chap has been unwell he's in all the time at the moment, so the postie should have been able to get access.

Thanks in advance!! I really hope things are getting better for you guys although making the lapsing a permanent feature sounds like a bad idea in terms of increasing your workload and adding extra stress.

custardy

you may even be in my area
pm me your postcode if you like to confirm

the probelm you have is the posties dont return to the office
so postie takes the mail out for your stair and cannot gain entry on monday
this mail is 'pouched off' at a post office
this might not get back to the delivery office till wednesday
then its back out on wednesday and you try again

ps your service button doesnt buzz any flats,it opens the door during a set time period
how a lapsed duty is picked isnt that simple as your trying to find a duty that the walks that surround it can manage ot get to and deliver to without being miles from their own duty

CaroB_2

Thanks, custardy

Now all I need to do is work out how to get the service button changed....