17,000 Royal Mail jobs to go
Royal Mail confirmed yesterday that it is to shed about 17,000 jobs over the next two years as it shakes up the way post is delivered in an effort to return to profitability.
The company, part of the Consignia group which is losing pounds 1.5m a day, wants urban deliveries to be made by teams of between three and five postal workers operating from a van in bursts of 15 to 20 minutes each.
It claims that “starburst” trials in a number of offices have already proven popular with staff “since it reduces walking time overall and weight on delivery.” It wants to extend the scheme to 1,000 offices in a year’s time. The scheme, part of Consignia’s plan to cut pounds 1.2bn of annual costs, would see postal deliveries taking four hours rather than the 2.5-hour norm. Staff would work a five-day week, with new duty structures for Saturdays.
Businesses would get their mail between 7am and 9am while “most other” customers would get one delivery between 9am and lunchtime. “In some rural areas this may extend into the early afternoon,” a leaflet sent to 110,000 staff explains.
Royal Mail is also considering longer opening hours at inquiry offices and collection on delivery. “We will also test new paid-for services such as early delivery, chosen delivery time slots and evening delivery.”
It said there would be an estimated 17,000 fewer jobs in delivery across the UK. “Royal Mail is losing money and we need to get the business back to profitability if we are to create a better future for all our workforce,” its leaflet said.
John Keggie, deputy leader of the communication workers’ union, which is balloting members on a pounds 350m “flexibility and mobility” package, said it was prepared to “manage the problem” of surplus staff provided Royal Mail stuck to national agreements on voluntary redundancy. “We do anticipate that around 17,000 will go over the next year or so . . . We recognise that there need to be changes to delivery to get a better service for customers.”
Copyright 2002 The Guardian.
